Taking nap during afternoon improves memory, language skills in elderly: Study

Written By : Medha Baranwal |Medically Reviewed By : Dr. Kamal Kant Kohli Published On 2021-02-11T05:30:43+05:30 | Updated On 11 Feb 2021 5:30 AM IST

China: Results from a recent study demonstrate that older adults who often take afternoon nap have a better cognitive function including language and memory. According to the study results, published in the BMJ journal General Psychiatry, people having a habit of afternoon napping had a higher level of triglyceride than non-napping.

Dementia is a disorder that interferes with domestic, social, and occupational functioning owing to decline in level of cognitive function. There is no effective dementia treatment currently. So, by identifying and modifying the risk factors it becomes possible to prevent and delay the occurrence of cognitive impairment. Several studies have shown afternoon napping promotes cognitive function in the elderly. Some studies, on the other hand, have shown opposite results.

Han Cai, Geriatrics, The Fourth People's Hospital of Wuhu, Wuhu, Anhui, China, and colleagues further examined the relationship between afternoon napping and cognitive function in the ageing Chinese population.

The stud included a total of 2214 elderly (napping group: n=1534; non-napping group: n=680). Cognitive evaluation were received by the the Mini-Mental State Examination, Chinese version of the Neuropsychological Test Battery, and the Beijing version of the Montreal Cognitive Assessment. Of the total subjects involved, 739 elderly volunteered to take blood lipid tests.

Key findings of the study include:

Significant differences in cognitive function and blood lipids were observed between the napping and the non-napping groups.
Afternoon napping was associated with better cognitive function including orientation, language, and memory in the present study.
Subjects with the habit of afternoon napping also showed a higher level of triglyceride than the non-napping subjects.

"The study's results demonstrate that afternoon napping was associated with better cognitive function including orientation, language and memory. Subjects with afternoon napping habit showed a higher level of triglyceride than non-napping," wrote the authors.

The study titled, "Relationship between afternoon napping and cognitive function in the ageing Chinese population," is published in the BMJ journal General Psychiatry.

DOI: https://gpsych.bmj.com/content/34/1/e100361

BMJcognitive functionnappingolder adults

Source : General Psychiatry

Medha Baranwal

MSc. Biotechnology

Medha Baranwal joined Medical Dialogues as an Editor in 2018 for Speciality Medical Dialogues. She covers several medical specialties including Cardiac Sciences, Dentistry, Diabetes and Endo, Diagnostics, ENT, Gastroenterology, Neurosciences, and Radiology. She has completed her Bachelors in Biomedical Sciences from DU and then pursued Masters in Biotechnology from Amity University. She has a working experience of 5 years in the field of medical research writing, scientific writing, content writing, and content management. She can be contacted at editorial@medicaldialogues.in. Contact no. 011-43720751

Dr. Kamal Kant Kohli

Dr Kamal Kant Kohli-MBBS, DTCD- a chest specialist with more than 30 years of practice and a flair for writing clinical articles, Dr Kamal Kant Kohli joined Medical Dialogues as a Chief Editor of Medical News. Besides writing articles, as an editor, he proofreads and verifies all the medical content published on Medical Dialogues including those coming from journals, studies,medical conferences,guidelines etc. Email: drkohli@medicaldialogues.in. Contact no. 011-43720751