Generations of people were raised thinking that when a person sleeps, that the brain is also resting. Well.... that was then, but the new view is that when we are sleeping, a number of important things are occurring. A main activity during sleep is that the brain is flushing out the garbage, that is, waste products or toxins. [Some other stuff going on includes cell repair, building of bone and muscle, memory consolidation, and strengthening of the immune system.]
A team of Boston researchers found that first a wave of electrical signal in the neurons of the brain occurs (known as a slow wave), and seconds after that a pulse of cerebrospinal fluid washes through the brain. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is the liquid that flows through the brain and spinal cord. The researchers, who studied sleeping humans, said that the waves were like a really slow wash cycle in the brain, and that this was happening every 20 seconds during deep sleep (non-rapid eye movement sleep). Their thinking is that the fluid washes away toxins associated with Alzheimer's disease.
Bottom line: Make sure to get enough sleep! Your health depends on it.
From NPR: How Deep Sleep May Help The Brain Clear Alzheimer's Toxins
The brain waves generated during deep sleep appear to trigger a cleaning system in the brain that protects it against Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases. ...continue reading "The Brain Flushes Out Waste and Toxins During Deep Sleep"