Loud snoring could be an early warning sign for dementia and memory illness scientists say.

Obstructive sleep apnoea, which is the major cause heavy snoring have changes in the brain linked to dementia, a study found.

Professor Sharon Naismith, who led the study from the Brain and Mind Centre at Sydney University, said: ‘Our results suggest that we should be screening for obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) in older people.’

She added: ‘We should also be asking older patients attending sleep clinics about their memory and thinking skills and carrying out tests where necessary.
‘There is no cure for dementia so early intervention is key. On the other hand, we do have an effective treatment for OSA.

'This research shows that diagnosing and treating OSA could be an opportunity to prevent cognitive decline before it’s too late.’

The Australian researchers recruited 83 people over 50 who were concerned about memory problems to a sleep clinic.

Participants slept normally while airflow through their nose and blood oxygen levels were recorded.

Graded on an index for sleep apnoea, 63 of the 83 had a mild to severe form of the condition

The results, published in the European Respiratory Journal, show those with low levels of oxygen in their blood had reduced grey matter in their temporal lobes.

This loss of brain volume has been linked to the devastating memory loss in dementia patients

And, while the study did not look at dementia, it found that people whose brain changes showed up in MRI scans performed worse over five memory trials using lists of 15 items.

Professor Naismith said: ‘Between 30 and 50 per cent of the risk for dementia is due to modifiable factors, such as depression, high blood pressure, obesity and smoking.



http://medfort.com.ng/loud-snoring-could-be-an-early-warning-sign-for-dementia-and-memory-illness/