Sleep enhances emotional memory, preserves emotional intensity

Sleeping on a negative thought helps preserve it, a recent study concluded. Participants were shown images. Some of the images were positive, others negative. Twelve hours later, those who’d been asleep had better recognition of the images. The negative images and the positive ones.

Emotional reaction to the negative images was greatly diminished over time when participants stayed awake. But for people who slept, the reaction to the negative images was just as strong as when they’d first viewed them. Researchers also linked a longer time spent in REM sleep with preserving emotional reactions to the images. The study was unable to connect REM sleep with recognizing the images.

The study was conducted by the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and Behavior Program at the University of Massachusetts. It appeared in the January issue of The Journal of Neuroscience.

Rock-a-bye Baby: Bedtime Advice for Moms

Moms have a new source of help for putting baby to sleep – the Internet. A yearlong review of the online Customized Sleep Profile shows that the advice given out there worked. Babies and toddlers – and their mothers – were able to sleep better as a result.

The Customized Sleep Profile has a database of sleep information stored in its memory. The information is separated into categories based on a child’s age. When a mom accesses the online program, she fills out a series of questions about her child and her child’s sleep habits. The program analyzes mom’s answers and finds comparable examples in its database.

Suggestions for improving the child’s sleep are based on these examples. The suggestions include things like following a regular bedtime routine, stopping night feedings, and answering fewer cries in the night.

The Customized Sleep Profile is available for free from Johnson & Johnson at http://www.johnsonsbaby.com/sleep .

To test the effectiveness of the Customized Sleep Profile, researchers sent surveys to 264 mothers who were using the online program. After three weeks, 90 percent of the moms said the Customized Sleep Profile was helpful and that they planned to continue using it. Their children were sleeping longer and waking up fewer times during the night, the moms said.

The moms also reported less tension, depression, fatigue and confusion because their babies were sleeping better.

A year later, researchers followed up with 171 of the moms still using the program. Their study was published in the Oct. 15 edition of the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine. The results show that the Customized Sleep Profile continued to be a valuable resource.

Read more about this study, or additional blog posts about infants and toddlers. The AASM has more about children’s sleep needs on the Your Sleep website.


Photo By: David Clow

Amount of sleep time linked to risk of teen suicide

Not getting enough sleep can lead to worrisome side effects such as daytime sleepiness and even memory loss. However, did you know that it can be associated with other consequences such as suicidal ideation (thinking of committing suicide)? Studies have confirmed that long total sleep times and short total sleep times (TSTs) are linked to suicidal ideation among adults. The hypothesis that total sleep times also are risks for teens was recently tested, and the results are published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine.

Researchers used the Youth Risk Behavior Survey to conduct their study. The survey included school-based and nationally representative samples. Researchers analyzed the link between suicidality and sleep, accounting for age, sex, race and ethnicity, feelings of sadness, and substance abuse.

About 15 percent of students reported suicidal ideation, 10 percent said they had planned suicide, five percent attempted it, and two percent said that their attempt had required treatment. The teens that had five hours of sleep or less had a higher risk of suicidality than those who had a total sleep time of eight hours. The same goes for teens who had 10 hours of sleep or more.

The findings suggest that both short and long TSTs are risk factors for suicidality in teenagers. More studies need to be done to examine whether or not sleep duration is a causal or modifiable risk factor for teens.

Read more about the realtionship between sleep and suicide.

If you think your teen may have problems sleeping, visit an AASM-accredited sleep center near you.

Photo By: Carlos Perez

Interrupted Sleep Could Impair Forming Memories

Uninterrupted sleep is the key to getting the right amount of rest. It not only helps physically, but mentally. In a new study, researchers at Stanford University discovered that sleep interruptions impair the brain’s ability to form memories.

Scientists assumed that memory would become hindered because of a lack of sleep continuity. Memory problems can be seen in people who suffer from alcoholism or sleep apnea. Both of these problems can cause sleep discontinuity.

The problem researchers faced was finding a way to break sleep into shorter segments without affecting the intensity or duration of sleep. The solution: optogenetics. This is a new technique that can genetically engineer specific cells to be able to be controlled by visible light pulses. Researchers performed this method on the neurons of the brain that help it switch between sleep and wakeful states.

Using mice as test subjects, researchers found that by hitting the rodents’ brain cells with 10-second bursts of light; they could break up their sleep without affecting the intensity or duration of the sleep.

After the test was completed, the mice were then given two objects. One was familiar while the other object was new to the mice. After interrupted sleep, the mice took just as long to investigate the familiar object as the new one. The mice spent more time with the new object when their sleep was not interrupted.

After testing different variations of sleep interruption, the researchers concluded that if the mice were allowed 62-73% of the normal sleep duration, it would not affect memory. Study co-author H. Craig Heller, professor of biology at Stanford University, believes that the findings show that sleep continuity is critical for memory.

It remains unclear how much uninterrupted sleep is needed to prevent memory impairment in humans. The researchers did say however that the memory problems experienced by people with sleep disorders are most likely due to disruption of continuity in their sleep.

Photo by: Tim Snell

Mid-Life Sleep Changes May Accelerate Cognitive Decline

New research published in the journal SLEEP
shows that middle-aged adults who have negative changes in sleep duration may experience a decline in cognitive function comparable to four to seven years of aging. The findings suggest that poor sleep can accelerate the aging process and lead to dementia at an earlier age.

The study involved more than 5,400 London-based public employees ages 45 to 69. The researchers used a series of questionnaires and tests to examine the participants’ sleep habits and cognitive function over a span of approximately five years.

Results show that the study participants who began sleeping less than six hours per night scored lower on tests for cognitive reasoning, vocabulary and overall cognitive function.

People who moved to sleeping an unusually long amount of hours – more than eight per night – had an even worse outcome. Long-sleepers had lower scores on all of the cognitive function tests except for short-term verbal memory.

The reason why long-sleepers had a worse cognitive outcome is unknown because the study relied on questionnaires to determine sleep length. It’s possible that the subjects who reported more than eight hours had poor quality of sleep due to frequent wakings.

Sleep apnea has been linked to a cognitive decline that is often mistaken for dementia. People with sleep apnea may wake hundreds of times per night without even knowing it. As a result, they may feel tired and “foggy-headed” the next day. Common treatments such as CPAP can reverse the brain tissue damage caused by sleep apnea and reverse cognitive impairment.

A small decline in memory is a normal part of the aging process and is common in much older adults. As the study shows, when found in middle-aged adults, memory problems and overall cognitive decline can be a red flag for sleep apnea or unhealthy sleep habits.

Invest in your long-term health by making six to eight hours per night a priority. If you are still fatigued most mornings you may want to consult a sleep specialist and get tested for sleep apnea or other sleep disorders.

A Solution to Sleep Problems from Post-War Trauma

A new pilot study shows a treatment approach that combines cognitive-behavioral therapy with image rehearsal can help shell-shocked veterans find more peaceful sleep. PTSD affects nearly 1 in 4 veterans who served in either Afghanistan or Iraq. Once they return home, as many as 91 percent of veterans report having trouble falling asleep or staying asleep.

The study involved a group of 22 veterans with sleep problems related to symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Half of the veterans received a combination of cognitive-behavioral for insomnia and image rehearsal therapy for PTSD-related nightmares. The control group was assigned prescription drugs including sleeping pills, antidepressants and other mood stabilizers. Both treatments lasted about twelve weeks.

Short term results show the group who received CBT and image rehearsal therapy saw significant improvements in sleep and PTSD symptoms. Due to the sample size and the nature of the pilot study, further research is needed to demonstrate the effectiveness of the approach.

The study was published in the February issue of Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, the official journal of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.

The approach used in the study combines two commonly used treatments for related conditions. Cognitive behavioral therapy is considered the front line treatment for long-term insomnia. And behavioral sleep specialists use image rehearsal therapy to treat nightmare disorder. Both sleep disorders bare similarities to the sleep-related symptoms of PTSD.

Another recent study proposed a more radical treatment for PTSD - sleep avoidance after a traumatic event. The authors theorize the trauma won’t go into memory if you don’t sleep. Sleep after all plays an important role in the development of memories.

Learn more about sleep and memory.

Sleep Deprivation May Help in Emotional Trauma Treatment

Normally the Sleep Education Blog reports on the numerous physical and mental health problems caused by sleep deprivation. In this one case, sleep deprivation may actually have a benefit. If you don’t sleep after a traumatic event, you may avoid developing PTSD or other anxiety disorders, a recent study reports.

Plenty of studies have shown that sleep is central to the development of memories. This approach to PTSD works the opposite, researchers theorize: Avoid sleeping and avoid the memory-forming mechanism.

So far, sleep restriction has only been used to treat trauma in artificial, academic environments. The approach has not been put to practice with patients at risk for PTSD, such as accident victims or deployed troops.

The double-blind study involved video clips of safe driving with shocking footage of sudden car accidents mixed in. Half of the participants who watched the videos stayed up all night afterwards. The others received a normal night’s sleep.

The group assigned to sleep deprivation had few fear-associated memories of the accident footage, compared to subjects who received a full night’s sleep.

The authors of the study insist sleep deprivation could be a possible therapy for post-traumatic stress or anxiety. Further research is needed before the therapy can be put into practice for real-life traumatic events.

Sleep: Nature’s Study Aid

Get some sleep instead of pulling an all-nighter to buy extra time to cram for a vocabulary exam. A new study found that sleeping after a study session dramatically helps with the recall of new words. This approach can help prospective students improve their performance on the make-or-break tests like the SAT, ACT or GRE.

Two groups of study participants learned a series of new words phonologically similar to familiar words. Both groups were tested after the initial study session. The session occurred in the evening for half of the subjects; the others studied in the morning.

Volunteers who studied in the evening slept before taking a follow-up test in the morning. The people who studied in the morning had to take the second test later in the evening, and were not permitted to sleep.

Results indicate the participants remembered more words when they slept before the follow-up exam. Brain activity data suggests sleep spindles during deep sleep helped the volunteers retain the new words.

In a statement to the media, one of the authors suggested sleep plays an important role in the reorganization of new memories.

Regular may notice studies these findings are in line with several recent studies involving sleep and memory. One noted study involved word association problems commonly found in the SAT. The research concluded that long naps with REM sleep led to higher test scores than short naps or waking rest periods.

Another article published in April reported that naps helped a group of study participants learn the correct path through a complex maze.

The message is clear: sleep on your academic success and shun the caffeine and cram sessions.

Sleepy Gene Worsens Effects of Sleep Deprivation

Some people are naturally wired to be tired. About 25 percent of people carry a gene variant that makes them sleepier than their peers, researchers have discovered.

The breakthrough explains why you might feel exhausted for staying up a half hour past your normal bedtime while your coworker in the next cubical has no problem regularly burning the candle at both ends.

People with a gene variant called DQB1*0602 are generally more fatigued whether they are rested or not because their sleep is more fragmented, researchers discovered. They spend less time in deep sleep compared to their peers. When they are fully rested, people with the gene variant have less desire to sleep.

The gene variant is closely related to narcolepsy, yet experts say anywhere from 12 to 38 percent of carriers are healthy sleepers who don’t develop the sleep disorder. Some people without the gene variant also develop narcolepsy, although it’s not as common.

The study compared 92 healthy adults without the gene variant to 37 healthy adults with DQB1*0602. Each participant spent a week at a sleep laboratory. For the first two nights they were allowed full rest, with a ten hour scheduled sleep period.
Sleep restriction followed for five nights. Each subject was allowed only four hours in bed and spent the rest of the time reading, playing games or watching movies.

Throughout the study, researchers measured the participants’ sleep quality and tested their memory, attention and ability to stay awake. Each person also reported how sleepy they felt.

When they were allowed full rest, people with the gene variant spent 34 minutes in stage three sleep compared to 43 minutes for people without the trait. After five nights of sleep deprivation people with the variant spent 29 minutes in deep sleep compared to 35 minutes for the control group.

While people with the variant were sleepier and more fatigued, they performed similarly in memory attention and daytime sleep resistance tests.

The findings may lead to changes in the way we look at sleep deprivation. AASM Member and medical director of Minnesota Sleep Disorder Center Dr. Mark Mahowald suggests doing away with sweeping statements about sleep deprivation.

“The implication is that everyone is sleep-deprived and sleep-deprivation does the same thing to everyone, but the tolerance and range of sleep is so different for different people,” Dr. Mahowald told ABC News.

"Our society has equated sleepiness with defects of character, like laziness and depression, but really, some people are generally sleepier during the day. They're more prone to naps, and to sleeping in. We have to accept the fact that sleep duration is genetically determined and not a sign of defect."

REM Sleep Boosts Creative Problem Solving

The sleep stage sometimes characterized by vivid dreams is when your mind goes to work for you. A study presented at the Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association demonstrated how REM sleep can boost memory and creative problem solving.

Sleep researchers at the University of California, San Diego, used a word association test to show the difference REM sleep makes on memory. Participants took the test in the morning and the afternoon, after either a nap with REM sleep, a short nap without REM sleep or a quiet rest period.

The first part of the test resembled SAT word-analogy questions. One sample question was:

Q: Chips:salty::candy:______
A: Sweet

After a 90 minute rest period, the subjects moved onto the second round. That involved using the first round’s answers as a response to three seemingly unrelated words.

Q: cookie: heart: sixteen
A:Sweet

The participants who were allowed REM sleep performed better in the afternoon, while the people who didn’t nap or get any REM sleep saw no improvement.

The authors believe REM sleep helped connect networks of previously unassociated information in the brain, which helped creative problem solving.

The findings are similar another recent study involving dreams and memory. Both results suggest REM sleep is when we pull together all the information from the day and turn it into memory.

Make Plans and Sleep on Them for Memory Boost

If you want to check off more items on that to-do list, your best bet may be to think it over and then get some rest.

A new Washington University study found people are more likely follow through with their plans if they memorize them before bedtime. Study participants who tried to carry out their intentions before sleep had less success.

The memory boost is a sort of “trigger effect.” A situation, place or thing the next day will suddenly remind you of your plans. Sleep strengthens the association between context and intention. Researchers say it doesn’t help the direct connection between the person and the message itself.

A process called prospective memory happens during slow wave, or deep sleep. Researchers believe it involves communication between the hippocampus and cortical regions. The hippocampus reactivates recently learned memories and places them in long-term storage.

The study involved four groups of 24 university students. One of the groups learned a test routine in the evening and returned for the test in the morning.
The group who tested in the morning performed the prospective memory task best in the part of the test that emphasized context.

The memory-boost may be helpful for everyday texts. For people who follow sleep hygiene the planning process seems to be an appealing wind-down activity compared to watching television or using a computer.

All types of traffic noise likely to disturb sleep, harm morning work performance

Buyers beware: living in a home near the airport, a busy road or train tracks will likely translate to a lot of groggy mornings at the office. An abstract presented Tuesday at SLEEP 2010 in San Antonio exposes the tolls of sleeping in an environment with a lot of nighttime noise.

The study found subjects exposed to recorded traffic noise while sleeping reacted slower during a psychomotor vigilance task the next morning. Reaction times tended to slow when the researchers increased the frequency or volume of the noise.

The sound of passing trains most often caused subjects to wake, followed by auto traffic and airplane noise. Each type of noise caused about the same level of impairment the following morning. Combining the three kinds of noise did not lead to worse symptoms.

The lead author of the study said the risk of being awoken by nighttime noise is highest among those who are susceptible to sleep disturbances, including children, shift workers, the elderly and those with chronic medical conditions.

72 study subjects slept in a laboratory as recorded traffic noises from airplanes, cars and trains played for 11 consecutive nights. Sleeping participants heard 40 to 120 sounds in any combination or volume per night. After waking up the subjects completed a psychomotor vigilance task, memory search task and unstable tracking task to measure neurobehavioral performance.

Traffic noises are one of the many causes of the form of insomnia called “environmental sleep disorder.” A common solution is drowning out the traffic sounds with white noise, produced by a fan or sound machine.

Sleep apnea in kids predicts lower grades, behavioral problems

Obstructive sleep apnea is a not only a health risk for children, it’s a barrier to academic success. Schoolchildren with moderate to severe sleep-disordered breathing averaged a half a grade lower than their peers. Those same children are also prone to behavioral problems according to an abstract presented Tuesday at SLEEP 2010.

None of the children with OSA brought home report cards with an “A” average. 30 percent had a “C” average or lower. Roughly 15 percent of their peers who didn’t have OSA scored “A” averages. Only 15 percent posted average or below average grades.

The findings were regardless of race, gender, socioeconomic status and sleep duration on school nights.

Testing suggests an association between OSA and inattention and poor study skills in real-world situations. There was no significant link to neurobehavioral functions such as intelligence, memory and problem solving.

163 overweight children participated in the study. That group was chosen because excessive weight is a risk factor for the disorder. OSA diagnoses were made based on report by parents and an overnight polysomnography.

Moderate to severe OSA was defined by an apnea-hypopnea index of more than five breathing pauses per hour of sleep. About half the children had OSA.

The children and their parents gave their grades to the researchers. Teachers and parents reported behavioral concerns. Office-based neuropsychological testing was used to assess children’s neurobehavioral functioning.

Invited lecturers headline SLEEP 2010's scientific program

At SLEEP 2010 from Monday, June 7, to Wednesday, June 9, six experts in sleep science and sleep medicine will present their recent research findings as invited lectures. Each presentation will take place from 1:45 to 2:45 Central Time on the Monday and 1:30 to 2:30 on Tuesday and Wednesday as scheduled:

Monday, June 7

“Infant and Toddler Sleep Disturbance: Helping Families Get a Good Nights Sleep” by Jodi Mindell, PhD

“The Role of Sleep in Brain Function: Memory and Emotion” by Matthew Walker, PhD

Tuesday, June 8

“Sleep and Brain Plasticity: Past, Present and Future” by Marcos Frank, PhD

“What it Comes to Sleep, Are Women Really so Different from Men?” by Kathryn Lee, PhD, RN

Wednesday, June 9

“Brain Structure and Function in Sleep Pathophysiology” by Ronald Harper, PhD

“REM Sleep Behavior Disorder as a Neurodegenerative Disorder” by Jacques Montplaisir, MD, PhD

Losing sleep over the “Lost” finale

Let's face it, I'm going to stay up way too late Sunday night. After the “Lost” series finale ends at 11:30est/10:30cst, I’ll call my closest “Lostie” friends. Then I’ll hit the internet. After that I’m I’ll have to watch “Jimmy Kimmel Live” to see all of the alternate endings. I know I won’t be able to sleep because I’ll still be thinking about “Lost.”

If I’m lucky I’ll get to sleep by 1 a.m. Monday is going to be a long day.

Countless Americans will be no different. The Super Bowl aside, the enigmatic sci-fi/ drama is expected to draw the highest ratings of any program in years.
ABC knows this. The network is turning what was originally a 2 hour program into a 6-hour-long marathon spanning late into the night.

Without a doubt “Lost” will be one of those water cooler moments everyone’s talking about at workplaces everywhere the following morning. Only the employees won’t be standing near the water cooler, they’ll be gathered around the coffee pot. Remember programming wraps up at 1 a.m est.

I realize this post is a bit of a stretch, but Sunday's finale is a big deal. Over the course of its six season “Lost” has pretty much ignored the subject of sleep altogether.

With the help of Lostpedia, a few friends and my own memory as a casual fan here’s the few instances I could come up with:

-In the pilot the sounds of the smoke monster moving through the jungle kept everyone awake the first night on the island.
-A sleep deprived Jack saw his father’s ghost in the first season.
-Claire refused to sleep because she was afraid someone would take “the baby”
-Desmond lived and slept in the hatch for three years and 44 days with the help of artificial sunlight.

Does the Locke Monster/Smokey dream?

And there’s that worst-case scenario that’s oft-mentioned in pre-finale speculation. Was it all a dream? Wrapping up years of speculation with a lazy ending like this will cause a fan revolt.

How do you think Lost will end?

Learning in your sleep, dreaming with a purpose

A new study is shedding light on one of sleeps biggest mysteries: why we dream. While it’s been known for some time that dreaming helps memory function, findings published Thursday in Current Biology indicate we continue to learn as we dream.

Subjects in the study spent an hour navigating navigated a complex 3D maze and then took a 90 minute break.

Half the volunteers napped during that period, while the others stayed awake.

When the break ended participants were asked to solve the same maze as quickly as possible.

Those who stayed awake the entire time had a drop in performance compared to previously. The nappers who did not dream only modestly improved.

The four people who reported dreaming about the maze turned in an impressive performance, completing it in half their previous time. Matched up against the group that didn’t nap, the dreamers’ scores were 10 times better.

Find out the details of their dream in this New York Times article.

CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta explains the physiological processes of learning while dreaming in the video below.

Movie “In My Sleep” is a Sleepwalking Thriller

Coke’s recent “Sleepwalker” ad had a whimsical, humorous tone. In contrast, the new movie “In My Sleep” examines the darker side of sleepwalking.

The movie’s tagline is, “Sleepwalking can be deadly.” And the film is rated PG-13 for sexual content, violence and bloody images.



The plot was inspired by real sleepwalking stories, first-time director Allen Wolf said in a press kit. He also wrote and produced the movie.

“I had read many stories about people who had done all kinds of horrifying things while they were sleepwalking,” Wolf said. “The idea that someone could do virtually anything while sleepwalking and have no conscious memory of it was fascinating to me.

“I thought that most of us could relate to feeling like a part of our lives is out of control. I wanted to take that to the next level – what if you lost control of yourself when you were sleeping? That idea drew me to the story.”

In terms of its medical accuracy, the movie appears to be a little loose with the details. The main character is diagnosed with “parasomnia, a rare sleep disorder.”

“Parasomnia” is actually a classification of a dozen specific sleep disorders. Some of them are rare, but others are quite common. All of them involve undesired behaviors during sleep.

Nightmare disorder. Sleepwalking. Sleep terrors. Confusional arousals. Sleep paralysis. Hallucinations. Sleep-related eating disorder. These are some examples of parasomnias.

But in general, the movie is right: Sleepwalking can be a dangerous problem. Some people with REM sleep behavior disorder take sleepwalking to the extreme. They act out vivid, action-packed dreams while remaining asleep. They may shout, punch, kick, run and even jump out a window.

Other people may sleepwalk as a side effect of taking a sleeping pill. In 2007 the FDA requested that a warning about the risk of “complex sleep-related behaviors” be added to the product labeling of all sedative hypnotics.

You can get help for a parasomnia at an AASM-accredited sleep center near you. The AASM offers these Guidelines for Taking Sleep Medications.

Read more about parasomnias. The 2005 documentary “Sleep Runners” tells the true stories of people who suffer from parasomnias.

Treating REM Sleep Behavior Disorder: Best Practices

People with REM sleep behavior disorder act out vivid, action-packed dreams while remaining asleep. They may shout, punch, kick, run and even jump out a window.

RBD was first reported in the journal Sleep in 1986. Sixteen years later a follow-up report was published by the same research team.

Recently the AASM reviewed all of the current research and developed a best practice guide for the treatment of RBD. It was published last month in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine.

The guide recommends two steps in the treatment of RBD. The first step is injury prevention. The second step is the ongoing use of medication to control the symptoms.

People with RBD often injure themselves or their bedpartner during sleep. So it is important to create a safe sleeping environment.

The bedpartner may need to sleep in another room. Other examples of how to modify the sleep environment include:

• Placing your mattress on the floor
• Using a sleeping bag
• Moving furniture away from the bed
• Adding soft padding to the corners of furniture
• Securing and blocking windows
• Removing weapons and sharp objects from the bedroom

These methods of injury prevention should be continued while taking medication. One drug that is suggested for the treatment of RBD is clonazepam.

A typical dose is 0.25 mg to 2.0 mg, taken 30 minutes before bedtime. But a dose as high as 4.0 mg has been reported.

There can be significant side effects when taking clonazepam. These may include morning sleepiness, confusion and memory problems. It should be used with caution in people with dementia.

Clonazepam also can increase the severity of obstructive sleep apnea. So it should be used with caution in people with OSA.

Melatonin also is suggested for the treatment of RBD. The effective dose may range from 3 mg to 12 mg at bedtime.

An advantage of melatonin is that there are few side effects. Dose-related side effects may include morning headache, morning sleepiness and hallucinations.

A variety of other medications may be useful in treating RBD. But the evidence is limited.

Treatment for RBD should be supervised by a board-certified sleep specialist. You can get help from a board-certified sleep specialist at an AASM-accredited sleep center near you.

Read more about REM sleep behavior disorder.

Actress Gwyneth Paltrow Wakes Up to the Importance of Sleep

According to the Huffington Post, Gwyneth Paltrow is spreading an important message to friends, family and fans: We need to get more sleep!

In her GOOP newsletter, Paltrow touches on the negative cumulative effects of sleep deprivation. They range from issues with performance and memory to association with other medical conditions like diabetes and heart disease.

How do you know if you are sleep deprived? The AASM reports that individual sleep needs vary. But most adults need about seven to eight hours of nightly sleep.

Common symptoms of chronic sleep deprivation include:

·Daytime sleepiness
·Irritability/ symptoms of depression
·Lack of motivation
·Shortened attention span
·Impaired judgment

Last month, the Sleep Education blog reported that getting even one extra hour of sleep can improve your health and quality of life.

According to Dr. Oz, you can improve your sleep and recapture your youth by making small changes to your bedroom and nighttime routine.

Visit an AASM-accredited sleep center for help with sleep problems that continue after you have taken steps to improve your sleep hygiene.

Image courtesy of The Huffington Post

Dr. Oz: One Minute of Sleep Apnea Advice

Dr. Oz recently gave advice for obstructive sleep apnea in a segment called “1 Minute to Better Health.”

First he outlined some of the ways that OSA can have a negative effect on your health and performance. It can cause daytime fatigue, poor mood, memory loss, heart disease, stroke and even death.



Then he described who is most likely to have sleep apnea. It often occurs when extra fatty tissue in the throat keeps air from flowing freely as you sleep.

“People with sleep apnea are usually overweight,” he said.

What can be done about sleep apnea?

He said that becoming a side sleeper may help. But he recommended weight loss as a better option.

According to Dr. Oz, most people tend to lose weight in their face and neck first. This means that dropping some extra weight could possibly cure sleep apnea.

“So remember, if you want to get rid of that extra sleep apnea problem you’ve got, just lose a little bit of weight,” he said.

If only it were that easy. Studies show that weight loss often reduces the severity of sleep apnea. But it rarely solves the problem.

One recent study found that a very low-energy, liquid diet cured sleep apnea in 17 percent of participants. Another study found that participants still had moderate OSA after a 16-week diet and exercise program.

The AASM recommends dietary weight loss as one treatment strategy for people who are obese and have sleep apnea. But weight loss should be combined with another treatment such as CPAP or an oral appliance.

Why? As Dr. Oz pointed out, sleep apnea can have a severe effect on your health. It requires immediate and effective treatment.

But weight loss takes a long time, and it may not be enough to cure the problem. Weight loss also is difficult to maintain. Excess weight often returns over time.

And it is important to point out that OSA also occurs in people who maintain a healthy weight. A study presented at SLEEP 2009 found a high rate of sleep apnea in non-obese adults.

You should talk to your doctor to develop a healthy weight-loss plan that is right for you. For help with sleep apnea you should contact an AASM-accredited sleep disorders center in your area.

Read more about obstructive sleep apnea and weight loss and OSA.