ScienceDaily for November 1, 2010 reported on sleep apnea.
During obstructive sleep apnea, breathing pauses as often as 30 times an hour, causing poor sleep quality and excessive daytime sleepiness. About 5 percent of the general population is reported to have obstructive sleep apnea. The prevalence is likely higher due to increasing obesity.
ScienceDaily for October 1, 2010 reported on the amount of sleep women should get.
A new study, derived from novel sleep research conducted by University of California, San Diego researchers 14 years earlier, suggests that the secret to a long life may come with just enough sleep. Less than five hours a night is probably not enough; eight hours is probably too much.
ScienceDaily for September 15, 2010 reported on exercise and insomnia.
The study is the first to examine the effect of aerobic exercise on middle-aged and older adults with a diagnosis of insomnia. About 50 percent of people in these age groups complain of chronic insomnia symptoms.
ScienceDaily for September 2, 2010 reported on sleep insomnia and death.
Compared to men without insomnia who slept for six hours or more, men with chronic insomnia who slept for less than six hours were four times more likely to die during the 14-year follow-up period (odds ratio = 4.33). Results were adjusted for potential confounders such as body mass index, smoking status, alcohol use, depression and obstructive sleep apnea. Further adjustments for hypertension and diabetes had little effect on the elevated mortality risk (OR = 4.00). No significant mortality risk was found in women with insomnia and a short sleep duration of less than six hours (OR = 0.36).A National Geographic Daily News article is here.
ScienceDaily for August 2, 2010 reported on the effect sleep-duration on Cardiovascular Disease.
Results show that eight percent of the study population reported sleeping five hours per day or less including naps, and multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that their risk of any cardiovascular disease was more than two times higher than that of people who reported a daily sleep duration of seven hours (adjusted odds ratio = 2.20). Nine percent of participants reported sleeping nine hours or more per day, and they also had an elevated risk of cardiovascular disease (adjusted OR = 1.57). Results were adjusted for potential confounders such as age, sex, race, smoking, alcohol consumption, body mass index, physical activity, diabetes, hypertension and depression
LiveScience for August 3, 2010 reported on sleep deficit.
In the study, after five days with only four hours of sleep, a 10-hour doze did remedy some of the ill effects of chronic sleep restriction. However, even after an extended snooze, participants still experienced lapses of attention and delayed reaction times.
ScienceDaily for July 27, 2010 reported on the effect of more light at night and less light in the morning on teenagers.
"Biologically, this increased exposure to early evening light in the spring delays the onset of nocturnal melatonin, a hormone that indicates to the body when it's nighttime," explains Mariana Figueiro, Ph.D., associate professor. "This extended exposure adds to the difficulties teens have falling asleep at a reasonable hour."
