health
There are multiple disorders that can affect people’s sleep habits and require medical attention.
17/3/2023
World Sleep Day is celebrated on March 17, a key date to talk about the importance of sleeping well for health. Although the health authorities recommend that people sleep seven hours or more during the night to have an adequate rest, there are patients who suffer from diseases or have health conditions that make them sleep more.
To begin with, it is key to keep in mind that people have changes in their sleep habits as they age. Newborns sleep for a good part of the day, but in adults the quantity and quality of sleep decrease.
“While we sleep, essential metabolic and immunological processes take place to keep us healthy”explained neurologist Celia García Malo, quoted in a statement from the Sleep Institute, a medical care and research center.
The problem is that when an adult person begins to sleep for more than eight hours, these positive effects that sleep has on the body are not so profound. The health institution warned that on occasions when people sleep more than they need, the quality of sleep drops and it becomes lighter.
Among other things, the Sleep Institute added that sleeping for a long time can affect mood, increases the risk of diseases such as diabetes (due to the increase in glucose levels) and various cardiovascular conditions.
Likewise, excessive sleep can affect the proper functioning of the brain and mental health. In fact, there is scientific evidence that sleeping more than necessary can increase the chances of dementia.
A scientific investigation carried out by scientists from China’s Shandong University and published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society followed 1,982 people over the age of 60. After about three and a half years of research, 97 individuals who were within the study groups were diagnosed with dementia.
At the end of the study, the authors of the research concluded that sleeping too long and from early hours was associated with an increased risk of suffering from dementia and presenting greater cognitive deterioration.
“These associations with cognitive decline were statistically evident primarily among men or participants who were 60 to 74 years old,” the researchers said.
Diseases associated with prolonged sleep
There are some conditions that can cause the amount of sleep to increase. When a person is sleeping too much, is sleepy during the day, and has difficulty waking up in the morning, they could be diagnosed with hypersomnia.
MedlinePlus, the online encyclopedia of the US National Library of Medicine, indicated that when there is no clear cause to determine what causes drowsiness, it can be referred to as idiopathic hypersomnia disorder.
That medical source clarifies that while patients suffering from this condition may fall asleep frequently, they generally do not get restful sleep.
Patients may also have great sleep needs while they are carrying out different activities in work, educational or social contexts.
According to MedlinePlus, people with this condition can sleep between 14 and 18 hours a day. Besides, they may develop other symptoms such as anxiety, irritability, loss of appetite, difficulty remembering, slowness of speech or thinking, and restlessness.
To diagnose this disorder, MedlinePlus advises that “your health care provider will ask about your sleep history. The most common approach is to take into account other possible causes for excessive daytime sleepiness.”
Other health conditions or diseases that can cause sleepiness include depression, thyroid hormone problems, the use of certain medications, narcolepsy (which causes sudden sleep attacks), or obstructive sleep apnea, which occurs when patients have trouble breathing while sleeping.
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