June 19, 2020

Pandemic 'Silver Lining:' Better Sleep for Some

WEDNESDAY, June 17, 2020 -- The COVID-19 pandemic may be stressing out most people, but it has had a surprising upside for college students: They're sleeping better.

That's the upshot of a new study that investigated sleep habits of 139 college students before and after Colorado enacted a stay-at-home order to prevent spread of the new coronavirus.

June 15, 2020

Are Hardened Arteries a Risk Factor for Poor Slumber?

FRIDAY, June 12, 2020 -- If you can't sleep well at night, the problem may be rooted in hardened arteries, a new study suggests.

"We've discovered that fragmented sleep is associated with a unique pathway -- chronic circulating inflammation throughout the bloodstream -- which, in turn, is linked to higher amounts of plaques in coronary arteries," said researcher Matthew Walker. He's a professor of psychology and neuroscience at the University of California, Berkeley.

June 9, 2020

How to Get Better Sleep While Working at Home

THURSDAY, June 4, 2020 -- For many, work-at-home orders aimed at fighting the COVID-19 pandemic have had an unintended side effect: sleep loss.

"We've seen a significant increase in reports of stress-related insomnia in recent months," said Julio Fernandez-Mendoza of the Penn State Health Sleep Research and Treatment Center in Hummelstown, Penn.

May 19, 2020

Insomnia May Forecast Depression, Thinking Problems in Older People

SATURDAY, May 16, 2020 -- Insomnia may significantly increase the risk that older adults will be unable to shake off depression, researchers say.

For the study, the investigators analyzed data on nearly 600 people over age 60 who visited primary care centers in New York City, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. All had some level of depression.

May 5, 2020

Sleep Apnea Tied to Raised Diabetes Risk in Black Americans

MONDAY, May 4, 2020 -- Black Americans with severe sleep apnea and other sleep problems are at increased risk for high blood sugar levels that can lead to diabetes, a new study finds.

The researchers examined sleep patterns and blood sugar (glucose) of 789 men and women, average age 63, enrolled in the Jackson Heart Study, the largest study of cardiovascular disease in black Americans.

May 5, 2020

Don't Let the Coronavirus Pandemic Rob You of Your Sleep

WEDNESDAY, April 29, 2020 -- If you toss and turn every night because the coronavirus epidemic has left you anxious and worried, one sleep expert has some advice.

Financial struggles, loss of control, or worries about loved ones can affect peoples' quality and duration of nightly sleep, said sleep psychologist Emerson Wickwire, an associate professor of psychiatry and medicine at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.