Sleep 'cleans' the brain of toxins

The brain uses sleep to wash away the
waste toxins built up during a hard day's
thinking, researchers have shown.
The US team believe the "waste removal
system" is one of the fundamental reasons for
sleep.
Their study, in the journal Science, showed
brain cells shrink during sleep to open up the
gaps between neurons and allow fluid to wash
the brain clean.
They also suggest that failing to clear away
some toxic proteins may play a role in brain
disorders.
One big question for sleep researchers is why
do animals sleep at all when it leaves them
vulnerable to predators?
It has been shown to have a big role in the
fixing of memories in the brain and learning,
but a team at the University of Rochester
Medical Centre believe that "housework" may
be one of the primary reasons for sleep.
"The brain only has limited energy at its
disposal and it appears that it must choose
between two different functional states - awake
and aware or asleep and cleaning up," said
researcher Dr Maiken Nedergaard.
"You can think of it like having a house party.
You can either entertain the guests or clean up
the house, but you can't really do both at the
same time."
Cont. Reading