Sleep Patch Could Track Brain’s Nightly Cleansing Ritual

When you get a good night’s sleep, you aren’t just giving your brain a chance to rest. Sleep activates a system only discovered in 2012 that washes out brain waste. Called the glymphatic system, it’s comparable to the better-known lymphatic system that moves and filters fluids throughout your body. A healthy glymphatic system is linked to good cognitive function and could prevent neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s, but monitoring it during sleep has been practically impossible in humans, because today’s methods require noisy, confining MRIs and invasive spinal injections. A new wearable device developed by researchers at Georgia Tech and Seoul National University (SNU) could offer a safer and more sleep-friendly alternative. The technology shines near-infrared light to detect brai