Excessive Sleep May Reflect Early Alzheimer’s Brain Changes, Study Finds

A Framingham Heart Study analysis of 2,410 older adults found that regularly sleeping 8.5 hours or more is linked to higher plasma p-tau181, an Alzheimer’s biomarker; risk increases most sharply beyond 10 hours and persists after adjusting for age, sex, sleep apnea, depression, kidney function, and APOE ε4. Other brain-damage markers lost their link after kidney adjustment, suggesting p-tau181’s sleep connection is Alzheimer’s-specific. The study notes this is not causal and long sleep may be a behavioral footprint of early neurodegeneration; if you consistently need 9–10 hours to feel rested, discuss sleep quality and potential biomarker screening with a clinician.