Causes
The causes of narcolepsy have remained unknown for a long time. Studies conducted since the 1990s suggest that people suffering from narcolepsy have very little orexin (or hypocretin, a substance in the brain) which normally regulates the sleep/wake system. They also found that the nerves containing orexin have degenerated. It now looks as though narcolepsy may turn out to be a ‘neurodegenerative’ illness such as Parkinson’s disease for example. A great deal of research is being undertaken on this subject.
