Dr. Michael J. Breus: Parkinson's Disease and Sleep
- Usually when we sleep, the body shuts down our muscle movement during REM sleep so that we can't act out our dreams
- In people with RBD, this shut-down doesn't happen
- In this case, people have dreams that are very vivid and violent, compelling them to talk, punch, kick, scream, and even jump out of bed.
- Interestingly, RBD is usually seen in middle-aged to elderly people, and is more likely to happen in men than in women.
This highly active dreaming can appear up to eight years before the onset of other symptoms of Parkinson's, so researchers are eager to see if they can use this to help patients before the disease becomes too severe. The next step is for scientists to see if RBD is always a sign of Parkinson's or if active dreaming could be a benign trait.
In addition to being a possible early sign of Parkinson's, RBD prevents people from getting restful sleep, mostly because they are so active during their dreams. Either way, it is important to keep studying this REM sleep disorder and other sleep disorders--the long-term dangers are too scary to ignore.
Sweet Dreams,
Michael J. Breus, PhD
The Sleep Doctor?
Everything you do, you do better with a good night's sleep?
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