Latest news with #nightmares
Yahoo
15 hours ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Why bad dreams could be aging and prematurely killing you
Nightmares can literally scare the life out of people, new research suggests. Frequent unpleasant dreams and nightmares are being linked with accelerated biological aging and an untimely death. According to a British team, people who experience weekly distressing dreams are three times more likely to die before they reach age 70 than people who rarely or never report experiencing nightmares. Researchers said the finding held even after they accounted for smoking, obesity, unhealthy diets and other risk factors for an early death. The study can't prove causation — that nightmares are premature killers. However, one theory implicates the stress hormone cortisol. Higher levels of cortisol are associated with shorter telomeres, tiny caps at the end of chromosomes, like the tip of a shoelace. Telomeres get shorter every time a cell divides, and shorter telomeres are considered a sign of accelerated aging of the body's cells. Cortisol is present at high levels during nightmares. 'For those who frequently experience nightmares, this cumulative stress may significantly impact the aging process,' the study's lead author, Dr. Abidemi Otaiku, of the UK Dementia Research Institute and Imperial College London, said in a statement released this week. What's more, nightmares mess with how well and how long people sleep, 'impairing the body's essential overnight cellular restoration and repair,' Otaiku said. 'The combined effects of chronic stress and disrupted sleep likely contribute to the accelerated aging of our cells and bodies.' Nightmares are common, Otaiku reported in earlier work linking nightmares with an increased risk of dementia and cognitive decline in middle-aged adults. About five percent of adults experience nightmares weekly, and up to 40 percent monthly, percentages that are likely even higher if bad dreams are thrown in, he said. Considering how common a phenomenon nightmares are, 'it is surprising that their clinical significance remains largely unknown,' he wrote. In the latest study, presented this week at the European Academy of Neurology Congress in Helsinki, Otaiku and colleagues analyzed pooled data from 2,429 children aged eight to 10, and 183,012 adults aged 26 to 86 from six cohort studies following large groups of people over time. Adults reported how often they had nightmares at the start of the study, and were followed for up to 19 years. For kids, nightmare frequency was reported by parents. According to a release, adults reporting weekly nightmares were three times as likely to die prematurely than people who rarely or never experienced distressing dreams. 'Children and adults with more frequent nightmares also exhibited faster biological aging, which accounted for approximately 40 percent of the heightened mortality risk' among adults, according to the release. Even people who reported monthly nightmares showed signs of faster aging and a higher mortality, 'Our sleeping brains cannot distinguish dreams from reality,' Otaiku said. 'That's why nightmares often wake us up sweating, gasping for breath and with our hearts pounding — because our fight-or-flight response has been triggered. 'This stress reaction can be more intense than anything we experience while awake.' While it's all enough to lose sleep over, more research is needed to confirm the associations. Hormones are just one factor in accelerated cellular aging. In the meantime, nightmares are less likely if people avoid scary movies, manage stress and seek help for symptoms of anxiety or depression, Otaiku said. Stress can drive unpleasant dreams, University of Montreal psychologist and sleep scientist Antonio Zadra told National Post last year as part of a special series on sleep. But dreams also 'tend to embody our current concerns and preoccupations and much of what is on our minds is often negatively toned.' Worries 'get replayed in our dreams in metaphorical and disjointed ways, and the emotions underlying them get amplified,' Zadra said. Strategies to distract negative thoughts can help calm people down, he and other said, like reading a book or slowing breathing, which soothes the fight-or-flight response. National Post Millennial couples are sleeping apart to stay together. Why sleep divorce is surging Why more Canadians are landing in emergency departments with cannabis-induced vomiting Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here.
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
Does cheese before bed really give you nightmares? A study FINALLY settles the debate
If the old wives' tale is anything to be believed, those who want a peaceful nights' sleep shouldn't tuck into cheese and biscuits right before bed. But is there any truth to the myth? A study has finally settled the debate on whether cheese gives you nightmares. And the findings might make you think twice about your late evening snack choice. The research, carried out by luxury sleep brand The Odd Company, involved recruiting 30 participants who dined on four of the UK's most popular cheeses – brie, cheddar, stilton and mozzarella – over four nights. They discovered that eating cheese before bed increased the likelihood of nightmares by 93 per cent. Participants reported that their dreams took a darker, more stressful and often frightening turn after eating cheese, the experts found. They described vivid and often unsettling dreams that included being cheated on, bumping into an ex, being forgotten on a birthday, friends under attack from flying robots and being scolded by a teacher at a salsa class. The worst cheese for nightmares was found to be brie. It triggered nightmares in 68 per cent of people who ate it, compared to 63 per cent for stilton, 56 per cent for cheddar and 40 per cent for mozzarella. The study also revealed that consuming cheese before bed led to half of participants losing an average of one hour and seven minutes of sleep per night. Analysis revealed women lost around five minutes more sleep, on average, than men. Amie Alexander, a registered dietitian at Nutri Peak, said: 'Cheese can affect the quality and quantity of sleep based on its nutritional composition. 'It contains saturated fats and protein, which take a long time to digest and can raise body temperature. 'If your digestive system is still working hours later after snacking on cheese at midnight, it will prevent your body from reaching deep, restorative levels of sleep.' She explained that another route possibly linking cheese to dreams is that it contains tryptophan. This is an amino acid involved in the synthesis of serotonin and melatonin - neurotransmitters responsible for mood, sleep, and internal body clock regulation. High levels of serotonin may influence REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, during which the most vivid dreaming occurs. 'Cheese contains tyramine, particularly in aged cheeses like Parmesan, Gouda, and Roquefort,' Ms Alexander added. 'Tyramine is said to induce the release of norepinephrine, a stimulant that can increase activity in the heart and brain. 'This could lead to more intense dreams or more awakenings during REM stages in sensitive people, with the possible subsequent remembering of unpleasant or vivid dreams.' According to the Mayo Clinic artisan, handmade, or aged cheeses tend to be high in tyramine. Cheddar and Stilton contain particularly high levels due to their aging processes, while Brie also ranks relatively high in tyramine content. Mozzarella, on the other hand, is a fresh, non-aged cheese typically made from pasteurised milk, meaning it contains significantly lower levels of tyramine. This might help explain why mozzarella ranks lowest for nightmares. Commenting on the findings Andrew Seed, managing director at The Odd Company, said: 'For all the cheese-lovers out there, we'd recommend enjoying your cheeseboard at least two to four hours before sleeping.' A previous study, carried out by the British Cheese Board, indicated that cheese could actually aid sleep. The research, which involved 200 volunteers in a week-long experiment, found that after eating a 20g piece of cheese 30 minutes before going to sleep, 72 per cent of the volunteers slept very well every night. The findings showed that none of the participants reported nightmares. Dr Judith Bryans, a nutrition scientist at The Dairy Council at the time, said: 'One of the amino acids in cheese - tryptophan - has been shown to reduce stress and induce sleep so cheese may actually help you have a good night's sleep.' HOW TO COPE WITH SLEEP PROBLEMS Poor sleep can lead to worrying and worrying can lead to poor sleep, according to the mental-health charity Mind. A lack of shut eye is considered a problem when it impacts on a person's daily life. As a result, they may feel anxious if they believe lack of sleep prevents them from rationalising their thoughts. Insomnia is also associated with depression, psychosis and PTSD. Establishing a sleep routine where you go to bed and get up at the same time every day can help a person spend less time in bed and more time asleep. Calming music, breathing exercises, visualising pleasant memories and meditation also encourage shut eye. Having tech-free time an hour or so before bed can also prepare you for sleep. If you still struggle to nod off, keeping a sleep diary where you record the hours you spend asleep and the quality of your shut eye on a scale of one to five can be a good thing to show your doctor. Also note how many times you wake in the night, if you need to nap, if you have nightmares, your diet and your general mood. Sleep problems can be a sign of an underlying physical condition, like pain. Talking therapies can help your recongise unhelpful thought patterns that might affect sleep. While medication, such as sleeping pills, can help break short periods of insomnia and help you return to better a sleeping pattern.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Why bad dreams could be aging and prematurely killing you
Nightmares can literally scare the life out of people, new research suggests. Frequent unpleasant dreams and nightmares are being linked with accelerated biological aging and an untimely death. According to a British team, people who experience weekly distressing dreams are three times more likely to die before they reach age 70 than people who rarely or never report experiencing nightmares. Researchers said the finding held even after they accounted for smoking, obesity, unhealthy diets and other risk factors for an early death. The study can't prove causation — that nightmares are premature killers. However, one theory implicates the stress hormone cortisol. Higher levels of cortisol are associated with shorter telomeres, tiny caps at the end of chromosomes, like the tip of a shoelace. Telomeres get shorter every time a cell divides, and shorter telomeres are considered a sign of accelerated aging of the body's cells. Cortisol is present at high levels during nightmares. 'For those who frequently experience nightmares, this cumulative stress may significantly impact the aging process,' the study's lead author, Dr. Abidemi Otaiku, of the UK Dementia Research Institute and Imperial College London, said in a statement released this week. What's more, nightmares mess with how well and how long people sleep, 'impairing the body's essential overnight cellular restoration and repair,' Otaiku said. 'The combined effects of chronic stress and disrupted sleep likely contribute to the accelerated aging of our cells and bodies.' Nightmares are common, Otaiku reported in earlier work linking nightmares with an increased risk of dementia and cognitive decline in middle-aged adults. About five percent of adults experience nightmares weekly, and up to 40 percent monthly, percentages that are likely even higher if bad dreams are thrown in, he said. Considering how common a phenomenon nightmares are, 'it is surprising that their clinical significance remains largely unknown,' he wrote. In the latest study, presented this week at the European Academy of Neurology Congress in Helsinki, Otaiku and colleagues analyzed pooled data from 2,429 children aged eight to 10, and 183,012 adults aged 26 to 86 from six cohort studies following large groups of people over time. Adults reported how often they had nightmares at the start of the study, and were followed for up to 19 years. For kids, nightmare frequency was reported by parents. According to a release, adults reporting weekly nightmares were three times as likely to die prematurely than people who rarely or never experienced distressing dreams. 'Children and adults with more frequent nightmares also exhibited faster biological aging, which accounted for approximately 40 percent of the heightened mortality risk' among adults, according to the release. Even people who reported monthly nightmares showed signs of faster aging and a higher mortality, 'Our sleeping brains cannot distinguish dreams from reality,' Otaiku said. 'That's why nightmares often wake us up sweating, gasping for breath and with our hearts pounding — because our fight-or-flight response has been triggered. 'This stress reaction can be more intense than anything we experience while awake.' While it's all enough to lose sleep over, more research is needed to confirm the associations. Hormones are just one factor in accelerated cellular aging. In the meantime, nightmares are less likely if people avoid scary movies, manage stress and seek help for symptoms of anxiety or depression, Otaiku said. Stress can drive unpleasant dreams, University of Montreal psychologist and sleep scientist Antonio Zadra told National Post last year as part of a special series on sleep. But dreams also 'tend to embody our current concerns and preoccupations and much of what is on our minds is often negatively toned.' Worries 'get replayed in our dreams in metaphorical and disjointed ways, and the emotions underlying them get amplified,' Zadra said. Strategies to distract negative thoughts can help calm people down, he and other said, like reading a book or slowing breathing, which soothes the fight-or-flight response. National Post Millennial couples are sleeping apart to stay together. Why sleep divorce is surging Why more Canadians are landing in emergency departments with cannabis-induced vomiting Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here.
National Post
2 days ago
- Health
- National Post
Why bad dreams could be aging and prematurely killing you
Nightmares can literally scare the life out of people, new research suggests. Article content Frequent unpleasant dreams and nightmares are being linked with accelerated biological aging and an untimely death. Article content According to a British team, people who experience weekly distressing dreams are three times more likely to die before they reach age 70 than people who rarely or never report experiencing nightmares. Article content Article content Article content Telomeres get shorter every time a cell divides, and shorter telomeres are considered a sign of accelerated aging of the body's cells. Cortisol is present at high levels during nightmares. Article content 'For those who frequently experience nightmares, this cumulative stress may significantly impact the aging process,' the study's lead author, Dr. Abidemi Otaiku, of the UK Dementia Research Institute and Imperial College London, said in a statement released this week. Article content What's more, nightmares mess with how well and how long people sleep, 'impairing the body's essential overnight cellular restoration and repair,' Otaiku said. 'The combined effects of chronic stress and disrupted sleep likely contribute to the accelerated aging of our cells and bodies.' Article content Article content Nightmares are common, Otaiku reported in earlier work linking nightmares with an i ncreased risk of dementia and cognitive decline in middle-aged adults. Article content Article content About five percent of adults experience nightmares weekly, and up to 40 percent monthly, percentages that are likely even higher if bad dreams are thrown in, he said. Considering how common a phenomenon nightmares are, 'it is surprising that their clinical significance remains largely unknown,' he wrote. Article content In the latest study, presented this week at the European Academy of Neurology Congress in Helsinki, Otaiku and colleagues analyzed pooled data from 2,429 children aged eight to 10, and 183,012 adults aged 26 to 86 from six cohort studies following large groups of people over time. Article content Adults reported how often they had nightmares at the start of the study, and were followed for up to 19 years. For kids, nightmare frequency was reported by parents. Article content According to a release, adults reporting weekly nightmares were three times as likely to die prematurely than people who rarely or never experienced distressing dreams. 'Children and adults with more frequent nightmares also exhibited faster biological aging, which accounted for approximately 40 percent of the heightened mortality risk' among adults, according to the release.
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
Study finds nightmares TRIPLE the risk of dying early - are you in danger?
A new study suggests that nightmare sufferers could be three times more likely to die a decade earlier than the average person. Weekly nightmares were also found to be a stronger indicator of an early death than smoking, obesity, poor diet, and little physical activity. Children and adults with frequent nightmares also showed faster biological ageing, which accounted for approximately 40 per cent of the explanation for the increased risk of early death. Even monthly nightmares were linked to faster ageing and increased mortality, compared to those who rarely or never have them. Scientists behind the study, from Imperial College London, said the link is likely due to the harmful effect of disrupted sleep and nightmare-induced stress on our body's cells. Dr Abidemi Otaiku, a brain science research fellow at Imperial College London (ICL), who led the team, said: 'This stress reaction can be even more intense than anything we experience while awake. 'Our sleeping brains cannot distinguish dreams from reality. 'That's why nightmares often wake us up sweating, gasping for breath, and with our hearts pounding—because our fight-or-flight response has been triggered.' He added: 'Nightmares lead to prolonged elevations of cortisol, a stress hormone closely linked to faster cellular ageing. 'They also disrupt sleep quality and duration which impairs the body's ability to repair itself and restore cells throughout the night.' Otaiku shared 'simple measures' the public can take to prevent nightmares in the first place. He said: 'Avoiding scary movies, maintaining good sleep hygiene, managing stress, and seeking treatment for anxiety or depression can be effective.' The expert also recommended a special type of psychological treatment called image rehearsal therapy. This involves re-writing and rehearsing a nightmare into a less frightening version and can be done from your own home. However, those suffering from frequent night terrors that affect their quality of life may benefit from seeing a sleep specialist. In particular, he suggested trying another type of talking therapy for insomnia sufferers called CBT-I, which has been shown in studies to reduce nightmares and slow the ageing of brain cells. The technique aims to help people with insomnia address underlying thoughts and behaviours that contribute to their sleep problems. Recent studies have shown a lack of sleep increases the risk of heart disease, obesity, and death by 83 per cent, 82, per cent, and 40 per cent, respectively. However, the researchers from Imperial and the Dementia Research Institute in London are the first to show that nightmare frequency is an indicator of an early death. The team analyzed data from 2,429 children aged eight to ten and 183,012 adults aged 26 to 86 over a period of 19 years. Nightmare frequency in adults was self-reported at the start of the study, with participants monitored for up to 19 years. Childrens' nightmare frequency was reported by their parents at the beginning of the study. The team's findings were presented at the European Academy Of Neurology (EAN) Congress 2025, on June 23. The researchers revealed that those who reported an average of one nightmare a week, over the course of a decade, were three times more likely to die before the age of 70 compared to those who do not experience night terrors. The new findings follow a recent study that revealed daytime napping was linked to a higher risk of early death. The discovery was made by researchers who tracked the sleep habits of more than 86,000 healthy middle-aged adults. They found that those who regularly napped - particularly in the early afternoon -were more likely to die prematurely than those who did not. The study, presented at the SLEEP 2025 conference, found the risk of death rose by up to 20 per cent among frequent nappers. Experts said daytime sleepiness may be a warning sign of disrupted or poor-quality night-time rest, and could point to underlying health problems such as sleep disorders, dementia, or heart failure. Professor James Rowley, from Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, who was not involved in the research, said the findings should influence how doctors ask patients about sleep. Speaking to Medscape Medical News, he said: 'The major take-home message is that if a doctor asks about a patient's sleep habits, they should also be asking about napping. 'In other words, doctors should be asking their patients, "do you nap in the day?"'
