Sleep Habits Predict Degenerative Diseases

The latest scientific studies suggest that sleep habits predict degenerative diseases, especially if they occur during the MRO phase (rapid eye movement, called rapid eye movement / REM).

In today’s article, we invite you to discover more information on this topic.

What do sleep habits entail?

Sleep disorders and associated problems do not only affect people with neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson’s disease, dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. They change the dream cycle and can alter our mental, mental and physical state. Sleep habits predict degenerative diseases. The main sleep disorders are:

• Sleep apnea (a short interruption of breathing during sleep)
• Urination during sleep (especially in children)
• Insomnia (unsatisfactory, insufficient or restless sleep)
• Restless legs syndrome (lower limbs move constantly during sleep)
• Sleep paralysis (when you wake up in the middle of the MRO phase, the brain is still active, but the rest of the body, except for the eyes, is not)
• Night terrors (when you suddenly wake up with a feeling of horror)
• Sleepwalking (when walking or performing various activities while sleeping)
• Narcolepsy (when you fall asleep anytime, anywhere, suddenly)

There are also a few less common sleep disorders, including:

• Idiopathic hypersomnia (alteration of the normal course of rest and the need to sleep an additional 4 hours during the day)

• Recurrent hypersomnia (episodes of excessive drowsiness, which can last up to 20 hours over several days)
• Idiopathic insomnia (a neurological disorder that involves the disorder of the wake / sleep cycle)

Sleep habits predict degenerative diseases in the MRO phase

According to a study conducted by the Neurology Department of the Clinical Hospital of Barcelona, ​​the behavior of our body during the MRO phase of sleep can warn us about the potential to develop certain diseases in the future, such as Parkinson’s disease and senile dementia.

Patients who have nightmares in which they are attacked or abused and who struggle or cry during the MRO phase are at risk of subsequently suffering from neurodegenerative diseases. The cause is a dopamine deficiency in the brain.

People who show such symptoms can go to a somnology clinic to undergo thorough investigations. Thus, they will be able to identify which diseases they can develop in the future.

These investigations are performed on an outpatient basis in these clinics or hospitals. Physicians analyze behavior during the MRO phase to determine the patient’s risk of developing a specific disease.

Sleep disorders could give us important clues to prevent narcolepsy, strokes and drowsiness. Doctors may even detect respiratory problems such as sleep apnea or snoring.

Sleep habits predict degenerative diseases in other circumstances as well

In addition to helping patients with sleep-related respiratory disorders, Barcelona Clinical Hospital offers drug treatments and explores the relationship between epilepsy and sleep disorders.

According to neurologist Maria Gudin, it is not easy to distinguish an episode of epilepsy from a sleep disorder. His colleague, Mercedes Munoz, claims that Parkinson’s disease (the second most common neurological disease) occurs more often among people suffering from insomnia, anxiety and depression.

• 80% of patients with Parkinson’s disease experience hypersomnia.
• 40% of them suffer from sleep disorders that are triggered during the MRO phase.
• Restless legs syndrome affects 20% of these patients.

Changes in sleep habits often affect patients suffering from neurodegenerative diseases, altering their quality of life.

Understanding sleep habits

Because sleeping habits predict degenerative diseases, they must be approached from a therapeutic point of view. Dr. Estefania Segura has associated the main sleep disorders with the onset of mental illnesses such as schizophrenia, depression, anxiety or bipolar disorder.

All the diseases mentioned, as well as generalized anxiety and post-traumatic stress syndrome, are influenced by sleep disorders. According to experts, the increase in life expectancy is the main cause of the growing number of cases of dementia in general and Alzheimer’s disease in particular.

Aging, Alzheimer’s disease and sleep disorders are closely linked. Combined with a genetic predisposition and various external factors, they can significantly alter the patient’s quality of life.

Many of these patients end up in hospital due to sleep problems. In these cases, changes in sleep habits are much more severe than in those without associated diseases. The sleep of those suffering from Alzheimer’s disease has the following characteristics:

• Accelerated movements
• Decreasing the time spent on deep sleep and MRO
• Drowsiness during the day

The main cause of these symptoms is the degradation of neurons. The hypothalamus and the internal clock are responsible for sleep and wakefulness, but in patients with neurodegenerative diseases they are unbalanced.