Memory loss and dementia top the fear list for aging. Regrettably, the rates of Alzheimer's Disease and other dementia's are increasing. But there is good news and it's not about drugs! The evidence shows we can sleep our way to better memory and less Alzheimer's risk. It even improves our learning and creative problem solving abilities!
#1 Your Nightly Brain Shower
Every night, our brain gets a good cleaning - if we get enough early Deep Sleep!
Through the recently discovered glymphatic system, spinal fluid enters the brain cells to cleanse our brain of metabolic wastes. This happens during the early hours when we're in Deep Sleep. These wastes include beta-amyloid and tao proteins associated with Alzheimer's Disease.
If we lose our early Deep Sleep, the waste begins to pile up, increasing our Alzheimer's Disease risk. Even more recently, researchers have discovered how more amyloid and tao proteins are generated in just one night's poor sleep. Because these proteins are stored in areas of the brain that help us sleep, this build up can lead to sleep issues over time. We now have a vicious feedback loop: Too little sleep leading to amyloid and tao build up. Amyloid and tao build up leading to less sleep. We cannot say which comes first, but another Canadian study published in 2023 shows yet again, a relationship between deep sleep and Alzheimer's Disease as we age.
The Good News: Reinforcing our natural circadian rhythms and avoiding sleep disruptors can help mitigate these and other insults to our brain's cognitive function. We cannot control everything but we can take actions to reduce our risks for Alzheimer's Disease. We can stack the deck in our favor.
#2. Making New Memories
Keep your memory going strong with regular, quality sleep - early deep sleep in particular!
Deep Sleep transfers our day's new memories to long term storage. This allows the brain to free up space in its temporary storage location used for new memory capture. If the transfer doesn't happen, we run out of space to capture new memories the next day! Imagine a USB stick that gets so full every day there is no room to store new data.
Sufficient Deep Sleep gives the brain time to transfer the data to the long term storage drive and make room for new data capture the next day. Miss a day or two of good sleep and you have less room to capture new memories. Over time, some of the memories not yet transferred can also be overwritten and lost forever.
#3. Connecting Memory Bites for Learning & Creating Problem Solving
First we solidify and transfer memories to long term storage. Then we connect them with other memories for learning and creative problem solving.
Once memories are transferred to long term storage through Deep Sleep, REM sleep takes over. REM further etches the memories into our brain then organizes and integrates these memories with other memories and experience.
REM also helps make the less obvious connections. Have you ever experienced that late night inability to solve a problem, only to have the ah-ha moment the next morning? REM sleep helps make connections far beyond the capacities of our conscious mind. For me, this used to happen around 3 or 4am during my tech days!
Regrettably, loss of REM sleep prevents the consolidation of memories and these connections from being made in full. It's why we need to watch out for Stealth Kryptonite factors like evening alcohol disrupting our REM sleep.
The Good News: With sufficient, regular quality sleep we can run the full program and keep on learning and keep on having those creative insights!
Final Word
The latest evidence shows we can reduce our risk of memory challenges and Alzheimer's Disease by respecting our sleep. Prioritizing sufficient, regular, quality sleep at the right time can make a world of difference to the quality of our mind for years to come.
Wishing you all the best,
Janice
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