Sleeping during the day would increase the risk of neurological disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease.
- Sleeping during the day could disrupt our biological clock
- Daytime sleep could cause neurological disorders
Sleep allows our brain to clean itself: it eliminates during the night all the waste accumulated during the waking period, thanks to a system called “glymphatic”. In NatureCommunications, researchers show that this cleaning mechanism is not only linked to the phases of sleep or wakefulness, but to our biological clock. This means that by napping we disrupt the rhythm of the glymphatic system and this can have consequences for neurological health.
A disruption of the circadian rhythm
The circadian rhythm is an internal clock that regulates various functions in our body, including sleep and wake cycles. To understand the effect of daytime sleep on the brain, the researchers anesthetized mice during the day, when they normally sleep. The experience showed that their glymphatic system continued to function normally. This means that the activation of this system is necessarily linked to our internal clock, and in humans, daytime sleep would not make it work properly.
“Human circadian rhythms are set to a cycle of being awake during the day and sleeping at night., insists Lauren Hablitz, lead author of the study. “People who rely on daytime naps to catch up on sleep, or who work night shifts, are at potential risk for neurological disorders.” According to her, this significantly increases the risk of developing dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.
Sleeping during the day is bad for your health
People forced to sleep during the day for professional reasons are exposed to other health risks. This can cause psychic disorders, reduce cognitive performance, promote obesity and coronary heart disease. The disruption of the biological rhythm could also promote breast cancer. In France, 3.5 million workers are affected by night work.
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