Research

Mixed

Rapid Eye Movement (REM) Sleep Behavioural Disorder (RBD), Apnoea, and Long Time in Bed (TIB) are associated with a higher risk of cognitive disorders.

If you have been diagnosed with REM Sleep Behavioural Disorder (RBD), sleep apnoea, or consistently spend excessive time in bed (TIB) without sleeping, these are linked to a higher risk of cognitive decline. Seek medical evaluation and treatment for these conditions as part of your long-term brain health strategy.

ModerateSupportsMEDIUM confidence
We also identified four other types of sleep-related problems that showed significant associations with risk of cognitive disorders, including rapid eye movement sleep behavioural disorder (RBD, RR=1.90...), apnoea (RR=1.29...), and long TIB (RR=1.15...)
Wei Xu et al. · Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery & Psychiatry · 2019

Why this rating

Based on fewer cohorts than insomnia/duration, with moderate credibility ratings (A- level).

Source

Sleep problems and risk of all-cause cognitive decline or dementia: an updated systematic review and meta-analysis

Wei Xu et al. · Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery & Psychiatry · 2019

DOI 10.1136/jnnp-2019-321896

Meta-analysis · 51 studiesCited 323×
Read the paper
DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

This is one finding among thousands. Every one is graded and traced to its source, so you can see what the evidence actually supports. Browse the research →