--- title: Alzheimer's and Sleep: Poor Sleep May Contribute to Memory Problems description: The latest research finds that poor sleep may be contributing to the buildup of the brain plaques that drive the disease canonical: https://time.com/3901855/sleep-alzheimers-disease/ author: Alice Park article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-06-01T15:00:02.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:41:11.520Z article:section: Health og:title: Going To Sleep May Be One Way to Avoid Getting Alzheimer’s og:description: The latest research finds that poor sleep may be contributing to the buildup of the brain plaques that drive the disease og:url: https://time.com/3901855/sleep-alzheimers-disease/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt76236f8252ef4332/69885243e20a871ae0a8b98e/159991320.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5446 og:image:height: 3063 og:image:alt: Bed sleep og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Going To Sleep May Be One Way to Avoid Getting Alzheimer’s twitter:description: The latest research finds that poor sleep may be contributing to the buildup of the brain plaques that drive the disease twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt76236f8252ef4332/69885243e20a871ae0a8b98e/159991320.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Go to Sleep: It May Be the Best Way to Avoid Getting Alzheimer’s > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Health Matters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Health Matters is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. The latest health news and expert advice on living well. Health Matters makes the fast-moving world of health more useful, surprising and human, from the latest science and medical breakthroughs to practical ideas for living better. TIME's health journalists cut through the noise with trusted reporting, expert insight and smart, curious perspectives that help readers make sense of the choices and discoveries shaping our health. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-health-2026q3/newsletters?i=da55d5b4-c1b0-47ad-bb94-5b8e0090dd4f&cr=time-nl-health-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Daily | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Written by TIME's health desk | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership Health conscious and health connected. A broad health-conscious audience with a credible institutional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ### TIME Health Matters: key statements * Health Matters is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * Health Matters is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-health-2026q3/newsletters?i=da55d5b4-c1b0-47ad-bb94-5b8e0090dd4f&cr=time-nl-health-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-health-2026q3/subscribe?i=da55d5b4-c1b0-47ad-bb94-5b8e0090dd4f&cr=time-nl-health-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is TIME's health newsletter? Health Matters is TIME's daily health newsletter, written by TIME's health journalists. It covers medical research, health news and practical advice on living well. #### Where can I get reliable health news by email? Health Matters is TIME's daily health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free daily newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ## Video: Ground Breaking Women Alzheimer's Study [Watch (HLS stream): Ground Breaking Women Alzheimer's Study](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/7CumxY4I.m3u8) (1:54)  _Published 2014-03-19. A new Alzheimer's Association study finds that women far more susceptable to the disease than men._  by [Alice Park](https://time.com/author/alice-park/)  ## Alice Park Senior Correspondent Jun 1, 2015 3:00 PM UTC  White Bed Sheets White Bed Sheets Getty Images  by [Alice Park](https://time.com/author/alice-park/)  ## Alice Park Senior Correspondent Jun 1, 2015 3:00 PM UTC Doctors studying Alzheimer’s disease have known for a while now that their patients are poor sleepers. But does the disease result in disrupted sleep, or do unhealthy sleep habits contribute to the disease? [Reporting in](http://mandrillapp.com/track/click/30195101/nature.com?p=eyJzIjoiLXlHREpkUFpQVDQ3TFNZUzh2cDhqd0lXWkFJIiwidiI6MSwicCI6IntcInVcIjozMDE5NTEwMSxcInZcIjoxLFwidXJsXCI6XCJodHRwOlxcXC9cXFwvbmF0dXJlLmNvbVxcXC9hcnRpY2xlc1xcXC9kb2k6MTAuMTAzOFxcXC9ubi40MDM1XCIsXCJpZFwiOlwiYTllNzc4ZDcxMmIyNDg1MThmNGNkYzE1MDAwMzVmYTZcIixcInVybF9pZHNcIjpbXCJmNjU4ZTgzMjcyNGEyNGRiZGYzZWQ0NGIwZDIwN2M4NzhjYzU5MWYwXCJdfSJ9) _Nature Neuroscience_, researchers led by Matthew Walker at the University of California, Berkeley, describe for the first time a unique pattern of sleep brain waves that seems to be linked to a higher risk of building up the brain proteins that can lead to impaired memory. When the team studied 26 cognitively normal older adults, they found that higher amounts of amyloid, the protein responsible for the hallmark plaques found in Alzheimer’s disease, were linked with more disrupted deep sleep patterns. More importantly, the higher amount of amyloid and the disturbed sleep were also associated with worse performance on simple paired-word memory tests, which the researchers gave the volunteers both before and after a night’s sleep. **MORE:** [Many Doctors Don’t Tell Patients They Have Alzheimer’s](http://time.com/3755176/doctors-diagnose-alzheimers-dont-tell/) “It wasn’t just all of deep sleep that was disrupted but a very specific electrical signature deficit that we found,” says Walker. “It’s very particular and very unique, so my hope is that it’s so specific that it may really offer quite a high degree of sensitivity and specificity for the changes we see associated with Alzheimer’s disease.” He stresses that in the current study, all of the volunteers were cognitively normal, and that the researchers did not follow them to determine if they eventually developed mild cognitive impairment—which often precedes Alzheimer’s—or Alzheimer’s itself. But the fact that the build-up of amyloid was connected to worse performance on the memory task highlights how early the disease process of Alzheimer’s may start: well before people experience any change in their intellectual skills. And one of the factors that may contribute to the accumulation of amyloid may be poor sleep. “Sleep is a great early warning beacon, a distress call that we can latch onto, to potentially alert us to the beginnings of Alzheimer’s,” says Walker. ### You Asked: Your Top 10 Health Questions Answered  You Asked: Are Cleanses Healthy? Potions that claim to clear your body of toxins might sound alluring, but do they deliver? Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Is Eating Dessert Really That Bad For Me? Bad news for sweet-eaters—except if you end your meals with this kind of treat. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: What’s the Best Way to Whiten My Teeth? Yes, teeth whitening actually works—but here's why you have to dish out major bucks to see results. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Is Meditation Really Worth It? From easing stress to lowering heart disease risk, focusing your mind can do some amazing things for your body. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: What’s the Healthiest Sweetener? Take a taste of the unsettled science of sweeteners. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Should I Go Paleo? The pros and cons of eating like a caveman. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Is Cracking Your Knuckles Bad? Here's what really happens to your joints when you snap, crackle and pop. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Is Running on a Treadmill as Good as Running Outside? You'll fool your body into thinking it's outside with this one small treadmill tweak. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: Does Laughing Have Real Health Benefits? Here's proof that everybody could use a belly laugh. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME  You Asked: What Is My Poo Telling Me? If you listen hard enough, you'll hear all kinds of health stories from #2. Illustration by Peter Oumanski for TIME **MORE:** [New Research on Understanding Alzheimer’s](http://time.com/83378/new-research-on-understanding-alzheimers/) “What we think we found is a new way that disruption of sleep contributes to the pathology that can disrupt the cementing of memories,” says Bryce Mander, a post doctoral fellow at University of California, Berkeley, and lead author of the paper. The findings also resolve one of the puzzling questions in Alzheimer’s disease: why buildup of amyloid starts initially in areas of the brain that don’t have anything to do with memory. Mander and Walker’s team found that the protein does deposit, however, in areas of the brain that generate the wave patterns of deep sleep. The relationship between sleep and amyloid is likely a two-way street, they say, in which the more amyloid that builds up, the worse the sleep, and the more disrupted the sleep, the more amyloid that gets deposited. Other studies have shown that deep sleep can cement memories as well as clear away amyloid. Not getting enough deep sleep, then, perpetuates the poor memory cycle. What that means is that it might be possible to slow down some of the damage done by piled-up amyloid. If poor, disrupted sleep is promoting buildup, then getting more deep sleep might be able to reduce the protein burden in the brain. “If my parents and friends in their 50s, 60s or 70s ask me if they should pay attention to sleep and prioritize sleep in terms of their health risk of developing Alzheimer’s, I would say at this stage very much, ‘yes,’” says Walker. “It’s very clear now that sleep is an under-appreciated factor contributing to cognitive decline later in life, and it seems, to the pathology behind Alzheimer’s.” ## Transcript [ NOISE ] The Breast Cancer Walks. The ribbons, the White House lit up in pink. I love the people around me. Like most women, Marilyn White had seen these symbols [ SOUND ]. She knew she should be concerned about breast cancer [ SOUND ]. But not Alzheimers disease. Alzheimers was not on my radar. I, you know I, I don't know why I had never paid any attention to it, but I guess in being busy it never dawned on me ooh [ INAUDIBLE ]. White was diagnosed with Alzheimer's two years ago. And it should have been on her radar and on all women's radars, according to a new report from the Alzheimer's Association. If finds that women in the 60s are about twice as likely to develop Alzheimer's Disease than they are to get Breast Cancer. And Alzheimer's Disease affects women more than men, almost two out of every three Alzheimer's patients are women. That's me. When she was younger, White felt invincible. She was an accomplished athlete. Brought home a silver medal in track and field at the 1964 Olympics. I'm right here. Now 69 years old, she wishes she had been more aware of Alzheimer's. It would've helped me, if I. News stage- by- stage what could happen. I think I would have caught it sooner. I would have recognize it sooner, and maybe been able to start a medication or something sooner. She was more aware of breast cancer [ CROSSTALK ] and found a lump in her breast. It was cancer. Now the cancer's gone. And Marilyn's a five- year survivor. But sadly, her Alzheimer's disease won't be going away. There are no effective treatments. Doctors [ CROSSTALK ] who treat Alzheimer's say more money and awareness can change that [ SOUND ]. They're competing with other diseases for dwindling research funds hoping to make their case for more money [ CROSSTALK ] for a cure. Elizabeth Cohen CNN, reporting. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3901855/sleep-alzheimers-disease/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3901855/sleep-alzheimers-disease/"},"headline":"Go to Sleep: It May Be the Best Way to Avoid Getting Alzheimer’s","datePublished":"2015-06-01T15:00:02.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T07:41:11.520Z","description":"Poor sleep may be contributing to the buildup of the brain plaques that drive the disease","url":"https://time.com/3901855/sleep-alzheimers-disease/","keywords":["medicine","Brain","Sleep","Alzheimer's","Alzheimer's Disease","amyloid"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt76236f8252ef4332/69885243e20a871ae0a8b98e/159991320.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alice Park","jobTitle":"Senior Correspondent","url":"https://time.com/author/alice-park/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt76236f8252ef4332/69885243e20a871ae0a8b98e/159991320.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Bed sleep","caption":"Bed sleep","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/medicine/","name":"medicine"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3901855/sleep-alzheimers-disease/","name":"Go to Sleep: It May Be the Best Way to Avoid Getting Alzheimer’s"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Ground Breaking Women Alzheimer's Study","description":"A new Alzheimer's Association study finds that women far more susceptable to the disease than men.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/7CumxY4I/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2014-03-19T13:35:55.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/7CumxY4I.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3901855/sleep-alzheimers-disease/","duration":"PT1M54S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3901855/sleep-alzheimers-disease/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```