Being left-handed has an unexpected effect on your sleep

Left-handed people are an unusual phenomenon in human biology, which scientists have been studying for years.

A person’s preference for writing and performing tasks with the left hand has implications for the person’s broader neurological status. It affects multiple aspects of brain structure and function Which distinguishes right-handed people from left-handed people.

Although right-handers make up the majority of the population, left-handers represent a fairly significant segment. According to Stady, Published in Brain Structure and Function Left-handed people make up 10.6% of the population.

Unexpected effect on sleep

Interestingly, if someone is left-handed, they may also have problems with sleep. a Stady A study from the American College of Pulmonologists found that left-handed people are more likely to develop periodic limb movement disorder (PLMD). It is a sleep disorder characterized by involuntary and repetitive limb movements during sleep, according to the Stanford Health Care Center.

These movements, which usually involve the legs but can also affect the arms, occur in a rhythmic and periodic manner, often every 20 to 40 seconds. PLMD can cause sleep disturbances, causing frequent awakenings throughout the night, which can lead to daytime fatigue and other sleep-related problems.

in Stady Researchers from the American College of Pulmonologists examined 100 people and found that left-handed people were more likely to make limb movements to either side of the body during sleep.

The exact reason for this association remains a mystery. However, the results suggest that there may be a link between left-handedness and periodic movement disorder (PLMD). It is important to note that these studies do not prove that left-handedness causes sleep problems or other disorders. However, it raises interesting questions about how neural factors associated with left-handedness affect sleep.

What about sleep?

in condition In the scientific journal International Review of Neurobiology, the authors highlight the relationship between dreams and the hand that people choose to write with. Particular emphasis was placed on the way the two hemispheres of our brain interact with each other.

Research shows that fixed right-handers tend to get rapid eye movement (REM) sleep faster – Lack of non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep.. This observation suggests that our “dominant” hand may actually influence how we move during the different stages of sleep.

The authors studied how the right and left hemispheres of our brain interact during sleep and how this interaction relates to REM sleep. the Rapid eye movement sleep is necessary to strengthen memory And vivid dreams, so this connection is particularly important. This can affect the consolidation of memories during NREM sleep and lead to an increased need for REM sleep to enhance memory processing.

In addition, recent research has indicated a possible relationship between left-handedness and general sleep disorders. A study published in the journal Nature and Science of Sleep examined this relationship by analyzing data from a sample of more than 1,700 healthy participants. The study found that people who had surgery and wrote with their left hand may be more likely to be awake during the night and sleepy during the day.