SLEEP IMPROVES MEMORY

We have long known that infants and young children require much more sleep than older children and adults. And we have known for a long while that human performance of memory tasks improves following a period of sleep. According to research out of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston (funded by grants from the National Institutes of Health and the Dana Foundation), we may now be gaining insights as to why.

Using fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging), researchers were able to identify which regions of the brain were active or inactive during testing. Memory consolidation, or the solidification of memory, occurs when communication connections between brain cells and regions are strengthened. Such consolidation takes time, often months or years, but also occurs as a result of time spent asleep. Memory is preserved with sleep.

Motor skill performance was definitely improved after periods of sleep, and in particular, the cerebellum became more active (a main brain motor center, responsible for control of speed and accuracy of movement). The limbic system, however, showed reduced activity following sleep periods. The limbic system controls emotions, such as anxiety and stress. Brain regions shift during sleep, and memory is “…shifted to more efficient storage regions within the brain,” so that “…memory tasks can be performed both more quickly and accurately and with less stress and anxiety.”

The result is particularly important in procedural skills, such as motor or movement skills. So talking, coordination, dancing, sports, playing musical instruments, and interpretation of sensory input becomes more automatic. More efficient.

Because the younger a human is the more apt that human is learning motor skills, there is an immense amount of new material to consolidate and learn. That “…intense period of learning may demand a great deal of sleep.” Bottom line? Sleep is critical for improving and consolidating procedural skills.