New research suggests that naps can help keep your brain healthy. (Tara Moore/Digital Vision/Getty Images)
By Jack Guy | CNN
take nap It may help maintain brain health as we age, according to new research. but, Previous research Excessive naps have also been shown to be harmful.
habitual nap Researchers at University College London (UCL) and the University of the Republic of Uruguay say that a larger total brain volume is associated with a lower risk of dementia and other diseases.
The difference in brain volume between those who nap and those who don’t equates to an average of 2.5 to 6.5 years of aging, the researchers said.
“Our findings suggest that for some people, short naps during the day may be part of the puzzle to help maintain brain health as we age. said UCL Senior Fellow and lead author Victoria Garfield. statement.
Tara Spiers-Jones, president of the British Neuroscience Society and deputy director of the Center for Discovery and Brain Sciences at the University of Edinburgh, said the study was “well conducted” but was limited by self-reported nap habits. . Persons not involved in the study.
The results show “a small but significant increase in brain volume in people with genetics associated with daytime naps,” she told the Center for Science Media.
“Even with these limitations, this study is interesting because it adds to the data showing that sleep is important for brain health,” she says.
In response, Valentina Paz, a researcher at the University of the Republic of Uruguay and UCL and lead author of the study, told CNN she agreed that “the study has some limitations,” but that the research used “I have confidence in the method,” he said.
statistical approach
The results of the study were published in Monday’s journal sleep healthresearchers used a technique called Mendelian randomization to participate in the UK Biobank study, a large biomedical database and research resource that followed UK residents from 2006 to 2010, starting at age 40. We analyzed DNA samples and brain scans from 35,080 people up to age 69.
Mendelian randomization is a statistical approach that uses genetics to provide information about exposure-outcome relationships.
The researchers looked at the parts of the genetic code associated with people’s likelihood of taking regular naps and compared the brain health and cognitive outcomes of those with the nap gene and those without.
“By focusing on genes set at birth, Mendelian randomization can avoid lifelong confounders that may affect associations between naps and health outcomes,” said the first author. Mr Pass said in a statement.
However, such techniques only show a link between naps and brain health, not cause and effect. Furthermore, the researchers had no information about nap times that could influence whether sleep was beneficial or harmful.
Pass told CNN that the findings so far suggest that “a short nap (5-15 minutes) in the early afternoon may be beneficial for those who need it.” Told.
Napping can also be harmful
On the other hand, previous research has shown that frequent daytime naps and regular long naps may be a sign of early dementia in older adults.
One study found that older adults who napped at least once a day or for more than an hour a day were more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease than those who did not nap every day or napped for less than an hour a day. 40% more likely to do so. research published Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia: Alzheimer’s Society Journal, March 2022.
And in July 2022, studies found People who nap frequently are more likely to develop high blood pressure and stroke.
Study participants who typically napped during the day were 12% more likely to develop high blood pressure over time and 24% more likely to have a stroke than those who did not.
“This is because, although napping itself is not harmful, many people who nap may be doing so because of a lack of sleep at night. and naps alone are not enough to make up for it,” clinical psychologist Michael Grundner said in a statement at the time. Grundner, director of the Behavioral Sleep Medicine Clinic at Banner University Medical Center in Tucson, Arizona, was not involved in the study.
Excessive naps can be a sign of an underlying sleep disorder, says Dr. Raj Dasgupta, a sleep specialist and associate professor of clinical medicine at the University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine. He told CNN in an earlier interview.
“Sleep disturbances are associated with increased stress and weight-regulating hormones, and obesity, hypertension, and type 2 diabetes are all possible risk factors for heart disease,” he said. “I believe that naps are a red flag of potential sleep disturbances for certain people.”
CNN wire
