I guess all of us have had some bad night sleep and directly noticed its effect on our mood, our productivity, our memory and thinking. All these effects are direct and short-term as they disappear after a following good night of sleep. But what about the effect of lack of sleep in the long run? How does it affect our health? According to a recent study, lack of sleep in a long-term can affect our risk of dementia.

The study followed 7.959 British adults for more than 25 years and showed a 30% higher risk of dementia in those sleeping less than 6 hour per night at the ages of 50s and 60s, compared to those who sleep 7 hours. This risk was estimated irrespective of cardiometabolic or mental health issues, which are known risk factors for dementia.

Do the results of this study suggest that improving sleep can help prevent dementia? The researchers don’t know it yet and aim to answer this question in the future. Saying that, researchers highlight that there is no one magic bullet to prevent dementia, but sleep seems to contribute to keeping our brain healthy as we age as well as an appropriate nutrition, staying mentally and physically active, drinking in moderation and not smoking.

Curious? HERE is the source