If the elderly often feel sleepy during the day, beware of dangerous diseases.

Do you find yourself yawning constantly and feeling excessively sleepy during the day? You may be at increased risk of a serious disease that commonly occurs in older adults.

A new study published in the American Academy of Neurology's medical journal, JAMA Neurology, has found a potential link between excessive daytime sleepiness and a disease in older adults.

According to the science website Scitech Daily, older adults who experience daytime sleepiness or feel less motivated due to sleep problems may be at a higher risk of developing dementia-related syndromes.

New research has found a potential link between excessive daytime sleepiness and a disease in older adults.

This syndrome, known as motor cognitive risk syndrome (MCR), is characterized by slower walking speed and memory problems, even without motor disability or dementia. MCR often appears before dementia symptoms develop.

Scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx, New York (USA) conducted a study on 445 people with an average age of 76 who did not have dementia. Participants were asked to answer questionnaires about sleep at the start of the study. They were asked about memory problems and had their walking speed tested on a treadmill at the beginning of the study and then once a year for an average of three years.

Sleep-related questions included how often people had trouble falling asleep, such as waking up in the middle of the night, being unable to fall asleep within 30 minutes, feeling too hot or too cold, and whether they needed to take sleeping medication.

Questions about excessive daytime sleepiness include difficulty staying alert while driving, eating, or engaging in social activities.

The question of enthusiasm includes whether it's difficult to maintain enough enthusiasm to complete tasks.

In total, 177 people slept poorly and 268 people slept well.

At the start of the study, there were 42 people with cognitive-motor risk syndrome, and during the course of the study, an additional 36 people developed the syndrome.

People who are excessively sleepy during the day and lack enthusiasm are three times more likely to develop dementia-related syndromes.

Results showed that up to 35.5% of people with excessive daytime sleepiness and lack of enthusiasm had motor-cognitive risk syndrome, compared with 6.7% of people who did not experience these symptoms.

Notably, after adjusting for influencing factors, the final results showed that those who were excessively sleepy during the day and lacked enthusiasm were three times more likely to develop dementia-related syndromes, according to Scitech Daily.

The study did not prove that these sleep-related problems caused the syndrome, but only showed a correlation.

The study's author, Dr. Victoire Leroy, a physician from Albert Einstein College of Medicine, said: "More research is needed to examine the relationship between sleep problems and cognitive decline, as well as the role of cognitive-motor risk syndrome."

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/nguoi-lon-tuoi-neu-hay-buon-ngu-ban-ngay-coi-chung-mac-benh-nguy-hiem-185241119172932849.htm