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LiveScience
LiveScience
Sneha Khedkar

Does the brain flush out toxins while you sleep?

A close up photo of a young woman's face propped up on a pillow as she sleeps; her face is illuminated by a bedside lamp out of frame.

We spend one-quarter to one-third of our lives sleeping, but while we rest, the brain remains hard at work, performing regular maintenance. Sleep is known to be important for learning and memory creation, and you may have heard that, during sleep, the brain rids itself of waste built up while we are awake. 

But how does the brain flush these toxins out of its system, and why does this happen only during sleep?

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