Forgetting Dreams May Be an Early Warning Sign of Alzheimer’s

New research from Australia indicates that the inability to recall dreams in older adults may be an early biological indicator of Alzheimer’s disease, potentially signaling changes in the brain before memory loss becomes apparent.

According to a statement released on April 8, 2026, by the Center for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHeBA) at the University of New South Wales, individuals who do not recall their dreams experienced cognitive decline at twice the rate of those who remembered them.

The findings, published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment & Disease Monitoring, suggest that dream recall can serve as a simple yet powerful early indicator of neurodegenerative changes.

Biological Indicators and Brain Networks

Darren Lipnicki, a research fellow at CHeBA and the lead author of the study, noted that older people failing to recall dreams may already be exhibiting early signs of Alzheimer’s disease, even when their memory appears to be functioning normally.

These changes seem to reflect disruption in the brain’s default mode network, the same system involved in both dreaming and Alzheimer’s

Darren Lipnicki

The research team identified strong links between poor dream recall and specific biological markers. These include the APOE ε4 gene, which is the primary genetic risk factor for Alzheimer’s, and higher levels of the blood biomarker p-tau217.

Lipnicki stated that this lack of recall may indicate the brain is producing fewer or less vivid dreams due to early neurodegenerative changes, and these findings remained consistent regardless of the participants’ actual memory performance.

Long-term Risks and Screening Potential

The study tracked participants over time and found that those who reported no dream recall at the beginning of the research were more likely to develop dementia over the following decade.

Because the assessment of dream recall can be conducted using a single question, researchers believe it could provide a low-cost and scalable method for identifying at-risk individuals much earlier than current diagnostic methods allow.

The Role of Distressing Dreams

While the University of New South Wales study focuses on the absence of dream recall, separate research has explored the impact of frequent nightmares on brain health.

A report published on October 19, 2022, in the journal eClinicalMedicine found that middle-aged and senior adults who experience troubling dreams at least once a week may be at an increased risk of cognitive decline.

Dr. Abidemi Otaiku of the University of Birmingham’s Centre for Human Brain Health analyzed medical data from two groups of Americans to investigate this link. The study focused on healthy adults who did not have Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia at the start of the research.

The findings revealed a significant correlation between nightmare frequency and cognitive health:

• Participants aged 35 to 64 who experienced weekly nightmares were four times more likely to develop significant declines in thinking skills and memory compared to peers who did not have distressing dreams.
• Frequent nightmares in senior populations were also linked to an increased risk of dementia.

Dr. Otaiku emphasized the importance of these findings because We find very few risk indicators for dementia that can be identified as early as middle age.

The research suggests that the presence of scary dreams could potentially serve as an early warning sign, allowing individuals to adopt lifestyle measures, such as regular exercise and a healthy diet, to help lower their overall risk of memory problems.

Collectively, these studies add to a growing body of evidence linking sleep disturbances—both the loss of dream recall and the increase in distressing dreams—to an elevated risk of Alzheimer’s disease and general cognitive decline.