Swedish scientists have concluded that a sleepless night affects the brain just as a head trauma.
Sleepless nights can be compared to a concussion. In both cases, the blood levels of the chemicals, typical of head injury, increase. This is the conclusion reached by the Swedish scientists.
The scientists from Uppsala University took blood from a group of volunteers, who spent a sleepless night. As a result, an increased amount of NSE and S-100B substances was observed, and they are indicators of such a head trauma as concussion. Although the increase is not as high as after a head trauma, it is still too considerable.
Previously, the scientists have showed that while sleeping, the brain can be cleared of toxins that get accumulated during the day. In their turn, these toxins affect the increase of NSE and S-100B, which contributes to the loss of brain tissue.
Meanwhile, the doctors recommend sleeping 7-9 hours a day as a norm.
