Is too little sleep harmful to your health? And sleep long? This is what a new team of researchers studied who recently published their findings in the Brazilian Journal of Epidemiology.
In their work, scientists analyzed the relationship between sleep disorders and cognitive performance in adults and the elderly. Et their results suggest that both short and long sleep are harmful for cognitive functions such as memory and executive functioning, in addition to overall cognition.
Sleep little or sleep a lot? Both are bad for your health
Researchers analyzed the isolated and combined association between sleep disturbances (duration, insomnia symptoms, and daytime fatigue) and cognitive performance in adults and older adults in terms of memory, fluency, executive functions, and cognition. overall. And also to identify whether the possible harmful effects of sleep on cognitive performance may vary between adults and the elderly.
Changes in sleep, such as changes in duration and quality, can impair cognitive performance in skills such as executive function and memory.
To do this, they carried out a cross-sectional analysis with data from the Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brazil) between 2012 and 2014. In total, 7,248 participants were included, between 55 and 79 years old, with an average age of 62.7 years and 55.2% women..
Results showed a positive association between sleep duration and performance across all cognitive skills (memory, language, attention, concentration, etc.), that is to say, durations less than or more than 7 hours are associated with poorer performance, regardless of age (if you are an adult or an elderly person).
Additionally, reporting insomnia was associated with poorer executive function, with the magnitude of associations greater for individuals experiencing insomnia at two or more time points or, in particular, insomnia combined with one sleep short (less than 7 hours). Insomnia over two or more periods has also been associated with poorer memory and overall cognition. There was no association between tested sleep disorders and verbal fluency. Isolated daytime fatigue was not associated with performance in the evaluated tests.
These results suggest that extreme sleep duration (greater than 7 hours) is detrimental to almost all cognitive functions studiedwhile insomnia appears to most strongly affect executive function but also impairs memory and overall cognition.
For researchers, this study provides evidence that can help support health interventions aimed at delaying the onset of cognitive decline and promoting healthy aging.
Sleep hygiene: tips for sleeping well
To get a good, quality night’s sleep, experts give some tips on what you can do:
- Reserve your bed for your rest : do not work there, do not eat there or watch films there before going to bed;
- Avoid naps during the day;
- Avoid using electronic devices 1 hour before bed ;
- Establish times for sleeping and waking up;
- Limit lighting bedrooms at night;
- Avoid looking at the clock;
- Avoid strenuous physical activity a few hours before going to bed;
- Do not consume stimulating drinks or eat “heavy” foods right before bed.
News reference:
Sleep duration, insomnia and cognitive performance in the Elsa-Brasil cohort: a cross-sectional analysis. Brazilian Journal of Epidemiologyv. 27, 2024.
