The Hidden Connection Between Sleep and Dementia

New research has identified associations between poor sleep and increased risk for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. More than 2,800 older adults participated in the study. They completed questionnaires about their sleep quality, including how long it took them to fall asleep, how long they slept, and whether they snored. The study investigators collected information about the participants’ cognitive health or if they died from any cause during a period of five years after completion of the questionnaires. The findings revealed that participants who reported getting fewer than five hours of sleep per night were twice as likely to develop dementia compared to those who had seven to eight hours of sleep per night. Taking a long time to fall asleep (more than 30 minutes) increased the risk of dementia 45 percent. The authors also found that getting fewer than five hours of sleep per night, having daytime sleepiness, and taking regular naps increased the risk of all causes of premature d