DISTURBING dreams could serve as an early indication that illness is about to strike, psychologists believe.
The theory suggests that 'prodromal dreams', which are strange and unusually vivid, may happen when the brain detects subtle biological changes in the body during the beginning stages of sickness.
Professor Patrick McNamara, a psychologist specialising in sleep at Boston University School of Medicine, explored the topic in a recent theory paper.
"The brain is constantly monitoring signals from the body's internal organs to keep our physiological systems in balance," he explained.
"These signals are integrated in paralimbic regions such as the anterior insula, which track the body's internal state.
"During REM sleep the brain effectively compresses and synthesises this information, producing a kind of snapshot of what's happening inside the body," Prof McNamara said.
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