How did you sleep last night? Did you sleep on your back, side or stomach?
It’s time you start taking the way you sleep really important because according to a study published in The Journal of Neuroscience, sleeping on your side rather than your back or stomach is important for the health of your brain.
According to the researchers, sleeping on your side helps the brain to discard waste products, thereby reducing the risk of Alzheimer’s and other neurological diseases.
The research was carried out by Dr Helene Benveniste, Principal investigator and a Professor in the Departments of Anesthesiology and Radiology at the Stony Brook University School of Medicine.
Dr Benveniste carried out the research by using rodents. The rodents slept in three positions – lateral (side), prone (down) and supine (up) – as they were used to examine the glymphatic pathway (where cerebrospinal fluid filters through the brain and exchanges with interstitial fluid to clear waste).
The findings revealed that the glymphatic transport was the most efficient in the lateral position compared to any other.
It is important you adjust your sleeping position as sleeping wrongly can accelerate memory loss and Alzheimer’s disease due to the brain waste not being correctly eliminated.
Phil