REM sleep linked to lower risk of dementia and Parkinson's disease

Key Points:

• A study of 95,559 adults found that greater amounts of REM sleep are linked to significantly lower risks of 83 diseases, including Parkinson’s disease, dementia, and heart failure, while more deep sleep is associated with reduced risks of seven conditions such as Type 2 diabetes and major depressive disorder.
• Sleeping six to eight hours per night was identified as the optimal duration for the lowest risk of 69 diseases, whereas fewer than five hours of sleep increased the risk for 37 health conditions.
• Night-to-night sleep irregularity and increased wakefulness during the night were connected to higher risks of anxiety, substance use disorders, and other health issues.
• Experts emphasize that total sleep duration and maintaining normal sleep patterns are crucial for overall health, noting that disrupted sleep may be both a symptom and a contributor to disease progression.
• The study, published in PLOS Medicine, is observational and limited by factors such as one-week sleep measurement via wrist devices and a less diverse participant pool, highlighting the need for further research to confirm whether increasing REM or deep sleep can directly prevent diseases.