What Happens to the Brain Due to Lack of Sleep at Night? This is the Explanation of the Doctor

JAKARTA - Lack of sleep will have a negative impact on body health, including the brain. This was revealed by a study recently published in Nature Neuroscience revealing the effects of less sleep time on brain health.

Quoted from Women's Health, on Wednesday, February 4, 2026, neurologist and physician of tiudr medicine, W. Christopher Winter, MD, said that the brain is a very active organ, consuming a lot of oxygen and glucose. This creates waste products that must be swept out of the brain, so that the brain remains healthy and ages properly.

The cleaning process is mainly carried out at night when a person sleeps through the glymphatic system, which is active during deep sleep to remove metabolic waste such as beta-amyloid proteins and toxins.

If you don't get enough sleep at night, the cleaning process can be disrupted. This will make the brain face higher pressure.

"With sleep deprivation, the brain feels more pressure to clear," Winter said.

Then if the habit of lack of sleep occurs continuously, it will burden the brain more and trigger more severe symptoms of the disease. The poison will accumulate and cause brain fog, memory disorders, and cognitive decline, up to dementia.

"Failure of effective clearance is considered a possible mechanism for downstream dementia," he added.

Therefore, it is highly recommended to maintain and prioritize sufficient and quality sleep time for a healthy brain. Sleep time at night and wake time at night must be consistent every day, for good physical and cognitive health.