Sleep Wise: How to Feel Better, Work Smarter, and Build Resilience by Daniel Jin Blum, PhD The Center for Disease Control considers insufficient sleep a national public health epidemic— nearly 30% of adults and two thirds of all high school
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) affects almost 1 billion people worldwide. OSA is a disease where the airway repetitively narrows or closes off during sleep, interrupting your breathing. This often causes arousals from sleep, which may result in daytime sleepiness, fatigue,
The Buzzword is Sleep Stewardship Sleep is a basic biological need for every human, yet many people struggle to find the time and resources for restorative sleep. This is where sleep stewardship can help. Sleep stewardship is the concerted or
Sleep disorders, circadian dysregulation, and Alzheimer’s disease Alzheimer’s affects 55 million people worldwide, and projections put that number over 135 million by 2050. If you have known someone with Alzheimer’s disease, and most of us have, you can attest to
Bruxism is the subconscious act of grinding or clenching teeth that can occur while awake or asleep. Patients may not even realize they are doing it. It is classified as a sleep-related movement disorder. Over time bruxism can cause headaches,
During the 2025 World Sleep Congress, Bei Bei, PhD, a research lead and clinical psychologist at Monash University Health Sleep Clinic, Australia, delivered a keynote presentation highlighting the unique challenges for women with insomnia and the need for CBT-I tailored
What are the physical signs of poor REM sleep? Dr. Ramagopal: REM sleep is essential for emotional regulation, memory consolidation and enhancing recall and learning. Lack of REM sleep can present symptoms such as fatigue in spite of adequate sleep,
Based in the United Kingdom, the Sleep Charity provides advice and encourages people to sleep better. It began as the Children’s Sleep Charity with a goal of giving parents and carers in England and Wales access to quality sleep support.
Quality sleep leads to better mental health. Whether you struggle with mental health issues, or not, quality sleep can improve the way you think and perform. Healthier Sleep spoke with psychologist Dr. Kathy Sexton-Radek about sleep and mental health and
World Sleep Society has published recommendations on the use of consumer health trackers (CHTs) for sleep measurement by professionals. With so many health trackers on the market assessing sleep in different ways, it can be difficult to know exactly what
The Buzzword is idiopathic Have you ever had a doctor say you have an idiopathic condition? This simply means that the doctors don’t know what has caused the disease. For example, a diagnosis of idiopathic hypersomnia would suggest that the
Have you ever woken up from a dream that felt so real, you could still feel it? Or maybe you had a dream that was so strange, you had to wonder what was going on inside your brain. Dreams are
Have you ever travelled somewhere and couldn’t sleep well the first night? If so, you are not alone. This common experience is known as the First Night Effect (FNE). What is the First Night Effect? Healthier Sleep spoke with Dr.
What are parasomnias and how do they affect sleep quality? Maya Ramagopal: Parasomnias are disruptive behaviors that occur during sleep and decrease sleep quality. They can occur at any time during sleep and can be seen during both rapid eye
The Nocturnal Brain by Guy Leschziner For Dr. Guy Leschziner’s patients, there is no rest for the weary in mind and body. Insomnia, narcolepsy, night terrors, apnea, and sleepwalking are just a sampling of conditions afflicting those who cannot sleep―and
Quality sleep has many benefits including improved health, increased productivity, and better overall mood. As awareness of quality sleep increases, so does the number of people chasing the perfect sleep. While it is helpful to be mindful of your sleep
A movement to shift secondary school start times to after 8:30 a.m. is gaining momentum. This is based on multiple scientific studies showing that later start times improve student sleep, health, safety, and performance. We interviewed Terra Ziporyn, PhD of
Safe sleep for babies. Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is a parent’s worst nightmare. While there is no guarantee against SIDS, there are steps parents can take to reduce the likelihood of SIDS. Listed below are recommendations from the American
How do nightmares affect my child’s sleep? Dr. Ramagopal: Nightmares can disrupt your child’s sleep, causing them to wake up feeling anxious and fearful. It may be difficult for them to fall back asleep, leaving them poorly rested for the
What do you do when your child struggles to sleep? Often people talk to friends or family about parenting issues, or maybe they consult social media. One suggestion for sleep issues is melatonin. In the last few years, melatonin use
The most accurate measurement to determine OSA is level one polysomnography, which requires a night in a sleep lab connected to cords and monitors with someone watching you sleep. For a child, it can be overwhelming. It can be so
The Lullaby Trust is a charity, entirely reliant on voluntary donations, that aims to save babies’ lives and support bereaved families. Around three babies a week still die from sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), and we are committed to bringing
The Buzzword is Curtain Calls If you’ve been around kids at bedtime, you already know what a “curtain call” is: those repeated, sometimes dramatic performances designed to delay bedtime. “I want a drink”, “I need to use the bathroom”, or
Whether a professional athlete or a person with a day-to-day job, sleep disorders can affect you. Learning the signs and symptoms of different conditions can help detect undiagnosed sleep disorders. Josh Andrews, a professional football player in the National Football
Moira Junge, PhD, a health psychologist, Adjunct Clinical Associate Professor, and CEO of the Sleep Health Foundation in Melbourne, Australia, believes collaboration plays a key role in spreading good health messages, increasing reach, and attracting sustainable funding. She is keen
There are as many opinions on napping as there are hours in the day. Is napping good or bad? How long should you nap? When should you nap? Do kids need naps? These are some of the questions that Dr.
How the World Sleep Congress Advances Patient Care Doctors in all specialties often travel to scientific conferences with their peers to share the new results of scientific studies, learn the latest clinical practices, and plan future projects. The process of
Why We Should Sleep Smarter: The Scientific Blueprint to Optimize your Energy Levels and Supercharge Your Day by Matthew Reed Across the world, millions of people struggle to stay awake, energized, and motivated throughout the day due to poor quality
Lourdes DelRosso, MD, PhD is a Professor of Family and Community Medicine at University of California San Francisco, co-chairs World Sleep Day, is the Director of World Sleep Academy, and chairs the Obstructive Sleep Apnea Public Awareness Committee of the
Circadian Sleep Disorders Network (CSDN) is an independent nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of people with chronic circadian sleep rhythm disorders. Circadian sleep disorders are neurological disorders in which the sleep-wake cycle is out of sync with the
Adolescence is an important time of life. As a body goes through puberty, there are a lot of physical, emotional, and mental changes. Julio Fernandez-Mendoza, PhD has studied this phase of life to see how these changes affect the way
Crowdlearning is a way of learning that is based on sharing experience and knowledge in a group of people. It serves as a motivational platform for the transfer of information in education. Crowdlearning can take place in a variety of
Spasms, starts, jerks, jolts: there are many names for the sensation of “catching yourself ” when falling asleep. This could be a sleep start or hypnic jerk. It is a very normal response as we prepare to sleep. However, in
What Causes it and How to Remedy It While sleep deprivation – or not getting enough sleep is common, there is a remarkable increase as we age. Sleep deprivation affects about 10 to 20 percent of individuals in the general
The brain continues to work while we sleep, consolidating memories, “cleaning” itself, and maintaining our metabolism and other critical systems of our body. Until recently much of how the brain works during sleep has been speculative. Dr. Laura Lewis, a