Topic: Sleep in the News

A new study outlined in a BBC story this week points to the productivity benefits of a siesta during the day.  Researchers at the University of California in Berkeley gave a group of 39 study participants a task in the morning that was hard to learn.  Results were relatively uniform among the members of the…
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Parents of young children know that naptime is a glorious time when you have, just for a little while, a moment to rest. Of course, we’ve always known that naps are not only good for the Mommy or Daddy. They’re obviously something the baby needs as well. A new study indicates just how important that…
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It’s okay to count these guys to the left right now, but don’t count any more tonight when you’re trying to get to sleep.  A recent article in the New York Times says scientists have actually debunked the myth that counting sheep will help you fall asleep.  Researchers at Oxford University gathered a bunch of…
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You may have seen a recent article on this site that warned about over-exposure to blue light before bedtime.  The reason is that blue light signals your body that it’s time to wake up.  In scientific terms, it shuts down the body’s production of melatonin, the substance in the body that tells us it’s time…
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Researchers continue to find new ways that sleep deprivation is dangerous to not only the person who isn’t getting enough sleep, but also to those around him or her.  Various studies have shown that those who get the proper amount of sleep live longer and are healthier in general.  Newer research is looking at the…
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A fascinating new sleep study is reported today at PsychCentral.com, that looked into exactly what is affected by sleep deprivation.  Researchers from Washington State University say they found that working memory, an executive function of the brain, was NOT affected by up to 51 hours of sleep deprivation.  What they did find was impaired was…
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Teenager Louisa Ball could understandably be mistaken for one of Disney’s princesses, but it’s not just because she’s blond and pretty. Louisa has Kleine-Levin Syndrome, also known as “Sleeping Beauty Sickness”.  The rare disease causes its victims to sleep for extremely long periods of time, during which they cannot be awakened.  Louisa’s longest sleep stretch…
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There’s a great article this week in the San Jose Mercury News about how school systems are now realizing that one of the reasons teenagers seem to walk around in a daze all the time is that they don’t sleep near enough.  Teenagers need more sleep than adults, possibly because of  the changes going on…
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Doctors and researchers are still trying to figure out one of the most natural human activities — sleep.  As they’re learning more and more about how children sleep, they may be finding more things that are keeping them from sleeping properly.  KABC-TV in Los Angeles explored some of these issues in a recent story, including…
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Oh, the lengths some people will do to stay alert all day… The guy at the left is Matt Keiser.  He’s holding his invention – Perky Jerky.  It’s caffeine-infused beef jerky.  Matt was profiled in today’s NY Daily News: “This is a great combination,” said Keiser, who founded the company with his ski partner, Brian…
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