London, April 05: It`s time to cut down on sleep for
those who love to spend more time on bed, for a new study says
that sleeping longer could raise a person`s risk of developing
Alzheimer`s or dementia.
Researchers in Europe have carried out the study and
found the link between sleeping longer and memory loss in old
age -- in fact, those who stay on bed for more than nine hours
could be twice as likely to develop dementia.
They have based their findings on an analysis of sleep
patterns of a group of people.
And, the findings revealed that those who indulged in
sleeping and napping for more than nine hours daily were 2.18
times more likely to end up with a degenerative condition like
dementia or Alzheimer`s disease.
In fact, the results were adjusted for smoking and
drinking habits, age and level of education.
People who got the least amount of sleep, categorised
as less than five hours a night, could also expect a slightly
increased risk, the study suggested. However, the researchers
said sleeping longer may be an early symptom of "undiagnosed"
dementia.
The findings of the study have been published in the
`European Journal of Neurology`.
Bureau Report
