Poor sleep linked to Alzheimer’s development

Poor sleep may increase the chances of people at risk of Alzheimer’s developing the disease, a study has shown.

Scientists conducted spinal fluid tests on 101 people with an average age of 63 who had a family history of Alzheimer’s or carried a gene linked to the condition. Participants who reported the worse sleep quality or suffered from daytime drowsiness had more biological markers for Alzheimer’s.

The researchers looked for signs of beta-amyloid, clumps of toxic brain protein linked to Alzheimer’s, and “tau tangles”, knots of protein in nerve cells associated with the disease.

Lead scientist Dr Barbara Bendlin, from the University of Wisconsin-madison in the US, said: “It’s still unclear if sleep may affect the development of the disease or if the disease affects the quality of sleep.”