A January 2024 study the University of California, San Francisco said,

  • “Given that signs of Alzheimer’s disease start to accumulate in the brain several decades before symptoms begin, understanding the connection between sleep and cognition earlier in life is critical for understanding the role of sleep problems as a risk factor for the disease,”

  • “Our findings indicate that the quality rather than the quantity of sleep matters most for cognitive health in middle age.”

  • “More research is needed to assess the link between sleep disturbances and cognition at different stages of life and to identify if critical life periods exist when sleep is more strongly associated with cognition,”

  • “Future studies could open up new opportunities for the prevention of Alzheimer’s disease later in life.”