10/19/2013 – Study: Brains flush toxic waste in sleep, including Alzheimer’s-linked protein

While we are asleep, our bodies may be resting, but our brains are busy taking out the trash.

A new study has found that the cleanup system in the brain, responsible for flushing out toxic waste products that cells produce with daily use, goes into overdrive in mice that are asleep. The cells even shrink in size to make for easier cleaning of the spaces around them.

Read the full article at The Washington Post.