Research shows that people who sleep poorly tend to have brain age that is older than their actual age. Chronic inflammation in the body caused by poor sleep likely plays a part. While the link between poor sleep and dementia has long been known, it was unclear whether poor sleep habits could cause dementia or whether poor sleep was an early symptom of dementia. However, new research has revealed that sleep quality may have a direct impact on the rate at which the brain ages . Our findings provide evidence that poor sleep may contribute to accelerated brain aging, explains Abigail Dove, a neuroepidemiologist at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, and point to inflammation as one of the underlying mechanisms.

There are some obvious signs of a poor night's sleep -- fatigue, irritability and trouble focusing, to name a few -- but it can also have some hidden effects. In a new study led by University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), poor sleep was linked to faster brain aging in middle-aged adults. While previous studies have focused on older adults, the average age of the 589 people in this study was 40 years old, according to a press release. The participants completed two sleep questionnaires five years apart. After 15 years, they underwent brain scans.