Sleep

Is Your Sleep App Keeping You Up at Night?

Tracking sleep is now routine in monitoring overall well-being. But are the devices used to do this actually useful, or have we simply found a more sophisticated way to clock watch? Sleep is as important to health as diet and exercise and, thanks to new technology, tracking sleep is now routine in monitoring overall well-being.…

Drinking Coffee Late in the Day Will Screw Up Your Internal Clock

It’s no secret that drinking coffee shortly before bedtime disrupts sleep, but a new study suggests that caffeine can actually affect our body’s internal clock, pushing back our natural rhythms by nearly an hour. I’m an avid coffee drinker and a true believer in the positive effects of caffeine, but I impose a strict personal…

How Traveling to Deep Space In Cryogenic Sleep Could Actually Work

Our bodies aren’t meant for space. We require too much maintenance to speed through the stars. We need a steady supply of things absent from space — namely water, food and oxygen. We crave warmth but won’t find it in deep space, where the average temperature is -455 degrees Fahrenheit. Even if we could survive…

How Do Astronauts Sleep In Space?

The brief answer to your question? I slept fine! There is really no specific training that astronauts receive with regard to sleeping and sleeping conditions. As a matter of fact, the best advice I got for sleeping was from my STS-117 Shuttle Commander C.J. “Rick” Sturckow. He told me to bring a good book and…

Maybe Our Ancestors Knew The Real Secret Of A Good Night’s Sleep

I have a friend who says three in the morning is the time we all spend laying awake, staring at darkness, and thinking about all the mistakes we’ve made in our lives. Everyone reading this knows that she’s right. But it doesn’t need to be this way. We could use this time productively, the way…

The more money Americans make, the more sleep they get

How do you sleep at night? If you’re rich, the answer is probably “really well.” Research compiled by the CDC reveals that there’s a correlation between how much money you make and how much sleep you get. To no one’s surprise, Americans who make less money aren’t getting as much sleep as the wealthy. If…

You Need to Spend More Time in the Dark to Sleep Better

Today most people do not get enough sleep. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has called insufficient sleep an epidemic. While we are finally paying attention to the importance of sleep, the need for dark is still mostly ignored. That’s right. Dark. Your body needs it too. Being exposed to regular patterns of…

Do You Suffer From ‘Exploding Head Syndrome’? You’re Not Alone.

New findings indicate nearly one in five college-age students has been startled awake by an abrupt, loud noise that doesn’t actually exist. Known as “exploding head syndrome,” the psychological condition appears to be more common and disruptive than previously thought. Art by Jim Cooke. Some of you may already be familiar with exploding head syndrome…

The characters on House of Cards have terrible sleep hygiene. “I’ve been pretty appalled by the Underwoods’ poor sleep habits,” notes science writer Jordan Gaines Lewis on her blog. In observation of Sleep Awareness Week, she lists three simplesleep hygiene rulesthat Frank and Claire would be wise to follow.

Caffeine Is Amazing And Terrible And Maybe Secretly Ruining Your Sleep

Are caffeinated beverages like coffee magical for fighting the symptoms of sleepiness, or are they evil for interfering with sleep and triggering symptoms commonly associated with anxiety disorders? The answer to both questions is a resounding yes! https://gizmodo.com/10-reasons-coffee-is-both-the-best-and-the-worst-bevera-5861402 Photo Credit: Susanne Nilsson | CC BY-SA 2.0 At Boing Boing, Murray Carpenter has written a sweeping…

Can You Die From Sleep-Deprivation?

The short answer? Yes, total sleep deprivation can almost certainly kill you. What’s less clear is how it does it. Before we get to the experimental and hypothetical ramifications of total sleep deprivation, let’s pause briefly to address the much more pressing and pernicious issue of poor sleep hygiene, the long-term effects of which can…

The Secrets Of Highly Efficient Napping

Not all naps are created equal. Some naps have been shown to rejuvenate where others boost creativity. What’s more, when you nap can be as important as how you nap. Here’s how to nap like a professional, nap-taking machine. Here’s how to nap like you MEAN IT. Photo Credit: Kevin O’Mara | CC BY-NC-ND 2.0…

Early Start-Times Are Robbing You Of Sleep

Everyone knows quality sleep is important, but getting more of it can be difficult. A growing body of evidence suggests early start-times for work and education may be to blame. The latest findings to link early start times to poor sleep hygiene appear in the January issue of the journalSleep. A team led by Mathias…

Awake, Online, And Sleep-Deprived – The Rise Of The Teenage ‘Vamper’

About three years ago, a teenage girl was talking with me and other students about using her cell phone late at night. She told us how she waited until her parents were asleep, then spent at least four hours every night texting with her friends. Her parents thought she was asleep in bed. “I’d sleep…

Your Tablet Computer Is Screwing Up Your Sleep Patterns

A new Harvard study is re-affirming the assertion that reading light-emitting e-books before bed, like computer tablets, could have a detrimental effect on sleep, which can in turn lead to serious health problems. You may already be familiar with the suggestions that too much exposure to light, both before and after we go to bed,…

One Famous Technique That Doesn’t Solve Jet-Lag, And One That Does

Traveling this holiday season? Here’s how to prepare your body for the crushing exhaustion that comes from switching time zones. Photo Credit: Jeff Sheldon | CC0 1.0 Before we look at surefire ways to address travel fatigue, let’s look at a myth that, while almost certainly ineffective, is actually kind of instructive about the whole…

Nintendo Is Developing a Non-Wearable to Track Sleep and Fatigue

While the world and his dog builds wearables of all kinds, Nintendo seems to be headed in a different direction. The ccompany’s CEO, Satoru Iwata, tells Reuters that a newly created healthcare division is building a sleep and fatigue tracker—that you won’t wear. The new device will apparently be developed in collaboration with a U.S.…

How Our Circadian Rhythms Have Learned to Ignore Time Zones

Right around this time every year, the world starts to make sense. It gets darker earlier and I get tired earlier, which means I get a better night of sleep. It turns out that I’m not just imagining things. When we go to bed is still determined by that impending darkness, even if our time…

Finally, a Sleep Tracker You Don’t Have to Wear

There can be many reasons why you’re not getting a good night’s sleep, and a sleep tracker can help ensure it’s not your bedroom to blame. But who wants to head to bed with a device strapped to your wrist, or hiding under your pillow? ResMed’s new S+ sits out of the way on your…

How Much Sleep Do You Really Need?

The amount of sleep adults need has once again come under the spotlight, with a recent Wall Street Journal article suggesting seven hours sleep is better than eight hours and the American Academy of Sleep Medicine drawing up guidelines surrounding sleep need. So, what should the guidelines say? Unfortunately, when it comes to the amount…