Sleepiness affects cognitive performance, motivation and behaviour. More and more people are suffering from sleep disorders, but the effects of sleepiness on social activity, which plays an important role in one’s overall health and well-being, have remained relatively unknown. In order to increase our understanding in this area, researchers at Stockholm University and Karolinska Institutet […]

Something like a quarter of the world’s population suffers from chronic pain at some point in their lives. As opposed to acute pain – for example, the feeling after hitting your finger with a hammer – chronic pain may not even have a clear cause, and it can linger for years or lifetimes. The burden […]

Disturbed sleep patterns do not cause Alzheimer’s disease but people who are at high genetic risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease may be more likely to be a “morning person,” have shorter sleep duration and other measures of sleep disturbance and are less likely to have insomnia, according to a study published in the August 19, […]

None of the 41 most common high blood pressure medications increased the risk of depression, while nine medications appeared to lower it, according to a study from Denmark, published today in Hypertension, an American Heart Association journal.

Feeling angry these days? New research suggests that a good night of sleep may be just what you need. This program of research comprised an analysis of diaries and lab experiments. The researchers analyzed daily diary entries from 202 college students, who tracked their sleep, daily stressors, and anger over one month. Preliminary results show […]

Approximately 500 000 Norwegians suffer from chronic sleep disorders, also called insomnia. Researchers have long known that cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia is the best documented treatment, but few people have access to such therapy. A fully automated digital version of this treatment has proven effective for many patients and can reduce the use of […]

New research details how the complex set of molecular and fluid dynamics that comprise the glymphatic system – the brain’s unique process of waste removal – are synchronized with the master internal clock that regulates the sleep-wake cycle. These findings suggest that people who rely on sleeping during daytime hours are at greater risk for […]

A new study of sleep, religious affiliation, and perceptions of heaven found that atheists and agnostics are significantly more likely to be better sleepers than Catholics and Baptists. Preliminary results show that 73% of atheists and agnostics reported getting seven or more hours of nightly sleep, which is recommended by the American Academy of Sleep […]

How we adapt to aging late in life may be genetically influenced, according to a study led by a psychologist at the University of California, Riverside. The research, published in Aging Cell, has implications for how epigenetic factors relate to aging. Epigenesis is a process in which chemicals attached to DNA control its activity. Epigenetic […]

A research team led by neurobiologist Professor Claire Jacob has identified an important mechanism that can be used to control the restoration of myelin sheaths following traumatic injury and in degenerative diseases. With the insights gained, the researchers were able to regenerate damaged myelin sheaths in mice by treating them with the active substance theophylline, […]