Not everyone has the luxury of working regular, traditional hours. An estimated 15 million Americans, from nurses to skilled tradespeople, are required to take unusual shifts; these may include graveyard shifts, early morning shifts, or shifts that rotate throughout the week. Working such irregular hours can have a significant impact on the body’s ability to
New couples are often advised not to go to bed angry, but for those struggling to solve a problem, researchers from Northwestern University say going to bed – angry or otherwise – may actually help to solve the problem at hand. While the concept of “sleeping on” an unsolved problem may have shown itself to
During a heat wave, our bodies undergo certain processes to help us cope with rising temps. While this makes it easier to tolerate hot days, it can seriously interfere with our ability to obtain high-quality sleep. “In order to deal with heat, your body increases heart rate and blood flow to your periphery — the exact
Sleep researchers have long classified people as one of three types of sleepers: morning larks, night owls, or neither. Now, new research suggests these aren’t the only categories, adding “afternoon people” and “nappers” to the list of possible sleep chronotypes. “Variation in the diurnal curve of alertness-sleepiness cannot be fully accounted for [with] just three
Firefighters with sleep disorders and mental health conditions are more likely to burn out, a new study finds. What’s more, firefighters who reported a lack of sleep also showed signs of depersonalization (feeling disconnected from one’s body and thoughts) and a lack of initiative. We spoke with Alexander Wolkow, Ph.D., lead author of the study
Sleep-disordered breathing, such as obstructive sleep apnea, may lead to an acceleration in aging, a new study says. The researchers found that subjects who struggled with disordered breathing increased their biological age by as much as 321 days. In addition, the effects of sleep disorders were greater in female subjects when compared with male subjects.
Using questionnaire data from nearly 44,000 American women, scientists at the National Institute of Health (NIH) found that women who use artificial light at night (ALAN) might be at an increased risk for obesity. According to the NIH, this is the first prospective study to link this type of light exposure to weight gain in
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) may provide a nonmedication treatment option for women who are experiencing sleep disturbances as a result of menopause, concludes a new study. “Compared to premenopausal women, women who are going through menopause transition complain of more sleep disruption,” Dr. JoAnn Pinkerton, professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Virginia
Employees of sleep tech company SleepsScore Labs are experiencing a new type of workplace incentive. In short, they’re being paid to sleep. The leadership team at SleepScore Labs recently announced the “Sleep For Success” Incentive Program. With this program, the company says they plan to financially motivate employees to track their sleep using their own
Teens who cut back on screen time for as little as one week may enjoy more sleep and feel less fatigued, according to a new study. Frequent screen users who reduced their screen time and/or utilized blue-light-blocking glasses during the study went to bed earlier and experienced more natural circadian rhythms compared to when they
Preschool-aged children who watch more than an hour’s worth of television a day get notably less sleep than those who don’t watch, suggests research from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. The study, which was published in Sleep Health, the journal of the National Sleep Foundation, monitored the sleep quality and sleep quantity of 470
Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) say “unsafe sleep practices” with infants — such as sleeping in an adult bed and with soft objects like blankets — increases their risk of death from suffocation. The complete findings were released in a study published in the journal Pediatrics last month. According to