Sleep breathing problems and daily activity rhythms linked to dementia risk in people with type 2 diabetes
Official title: Look AHEAD Sleep: Sleep-disordered breathing, circadian rest/activity rhythms, and the risk of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias in Look AHEAD
Funded at Wake Forest University Health Sciences · NIH-10843942 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This work looks at whether sleep-disordered breathing and disrupted daily activity rhythms are tied to memory loss and Alzheimer's risk in older adults with overweight or type 2 diabetes.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Wake Forest University Health Sciences NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Winston-Salem, United States) |
| Project start | August 15, 2021 |
| Project end | May 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $1,616,243 |
| NIH project number | 5R01AG074562-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-10843942 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are older adults with overweight or obesity and type 2 diabetes who are part of the Look AHEAD cohort and can complete home sleep testing, wear a wrist device, and provide phone-based cognitive testing and blood samples.
✕Less likely to help
People without type 2 diabetes, those not enrolled in Look AHEAD, or those unable or unwilling to complete home monitoring or blood draws are unlikely to benefit or be eligible.
What this research studies
You would wear a home sleep test device and a wrist activity monitor and complete brief telephone memory tests as part of the Look AHEAD participants included in this project. Researchers will combine those sleep and activity measures with long-term records of weight and diabetes control, blood tests for Alzheimer-related proteins, and genetic risk (APOE ε4). About 1,500 participants from the Look AHEAD trial will be studied, and clinicians will track whether they develop mild cognitive impairment, Alzheimer's disease, or related dementias. The project also uses the original trial groups (intensive lifestyle intervention versus diabetes support) to see if lifestyle changes change the links between sleep, circadian rhythms, and memory decline.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the findings could help identify sleep- and rhythm-related warning signs of dementia and suggest targets (like sleep treatment or lifestyle change) to reduce memory decline risk.
How similar studies have gone: Previous studies have linked sleep-disordered breathing and circadian disruption to dementia risk, but this large, long-term study focused on overweight adults with type 2 diabetes and use of randomized lifestyle-intervention data is relatively novel.
Where this research is happening
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Wake Forest University Health Sciences
Winston-Salem, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Udeh-Momoh, Chinedu Theresa — Wake Forest University Health Sciences
- Study coordinator: Udeh-Momoh, Chinedu Theresa
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.