Mixed
Self-reported sleep quality is NOT associated with neural health (white matter integrity) in healthy adults, despite associations in clinical populations.
Don't panic about occasional poor sleep causing permanent brain damage. This study found no link between self-reported sleep quality and white matter integrity in healthy adults. While clinical sleep disorders are serious, healthy sleep variations do not appear to harm brain structure.
Notably, we do not observe associations between self-reported sleep quality and white matter.
Why this rating
Large neuroimaging sample (n=641), use of Bayesian regression to quantify evidence for the null, and focus on a healthy population make this a high-confidence null result.
Source
How are age-related differences in sleep quality associated with health outcomes? An epidemiological investigation in a UK cohort of 2406 adults
Andrew Gadie et al. · BMJ Open · 2017
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