Memory Loss and Sleep Apnea

Posted by Janet Muniz, Thursday, July 10, 2008 at 10:00 AM by Janet Muniz

A recent University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) study shows that people with sleep apnea show tissue loss in brain regions that help store memory.

Why?

Apparently it has to do with the damage that impaired breathing can do in the part of the brain that lets us think and remember, according to principal investigator Ronald Harper, a professor of neurobiology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. The researchers are focusing on brain structures called mammillary bodies, located on the underside of the brain.

Of course, people with sleep apnea actually stop breathing during sleep, and can wake up repeatedly during the night. Research links sleep apnea to an increased risk of stroke, heart disease and diabetes and those who don't treat their sleep apnea can remain fatigued during the day and have problems concentrating and remembering things.

Dr. Harper's research suggests that the repeated loss of oxygen caused by the symptoms of sleep apnea may lead to brain injury, as it can cause brain cell death. What's most alarming is this: "The fact that patients' memory problems continue despite treatment for their sleep disorder implies a long-lasting brain injury," Harper said.

Yikes!

Dr. Harper and his team continue to research medical solutions for memory loss due to sleep apnea. People who experience memory loss due to alcohol, for instance, are treated with massive doses of vitamin B1, or thiamine, which seems to help dying cells recover. Taking vitamin B1 supplements may help sleep apnea patients with memory loss symptoms, too, in the same way.

It's really amazing what vitamin supplements can do. Lately I've been hearing a lot about calcium. How it helps keep bones healthy and the combination of calcium and vitamin D is like ambrosia from the Gods in terms of keeping you healthy. Such common stuff and a simple solution. Hopefully, vitamin B1 has that same power for those with sleep apnea. Like me.

I love it when a plan comes together!

Janet Muniz

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