Why your Sleep is Broken and How to Fix It with Chris Winter

·1 hr 35 min·2 clips

Even if Alzheimer's runs in your family, good sleep might change whether you ever develop it.

Dr. Chris Winter, 30-year sleep specialist, explains why conventional sleep wisdom is wrong. Core insight: sleep shifted from fixed trait to modifiable skill. Introduces glymphatic system (recently discovered brain waste-clearing mechanism active 10x more during sleep), explaining dementia link. Beta amyloid (Alzheimer's plaque) clears primarily during sleep—meaning poor sleepers carry higher dementia risk. Importantly, genetic predisposition isn't destiny; good sleep can suppress Alzheimer's expression. Winter addresses personal vulnerability (Alzheimer's DNA risk, childhood concussions) and clarifies critical distinction: sleep deprivation (insufficient time) differs from insomnia (insufficient ability to fall asleep) and requires different interventions.

As heard by us

A clear reframe of sleep as a basic drive, with more explanation than step-by-step advice.

Chris Winter treats sleep as a core drive, alongside air, water, and food, and that framing gives the piece its center of gravity. It stays close to first principles: sleep is presented not as a preference or a flexible habit, but as something the body is built to do.

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Why you'd press play

Why your sleep feels broken, and why your body still treats it like food, water, and air.

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