Dolphins may sleep with only half of their brains at a time

I used to love that show Flipper when I was a kid. They don't make good dolphin-centered programs anymore. This article discusses how dolphins appear to be staying awake as long as 15 days. The researchers think that dolphins may sleep with only one-half of their brain at a time. This allows them to stay awake and alert continuously.

Sleep deprivation and fat cell insulin resistance

This article discusses research about the effect of sleep deprivation on fat cells. They studied young, healthy people - allowing some to sleep only 4.5 hours per night and the other to sleep 8 hours for a few days. They examined each groups fat cells and determined that the short sleepers had more resistance to insulin. They concluded that sleep deprivation may impair our fat cells' ability to respond to insulin, which may lead to diabetes.

These findings are interesting, but there are some problems with the conclusions, as pointed out in the article. For example, most people do not get only 4.5 hours per night, more like 6 hours. Do they have the same effect. Also, most do not deprive for only a few days, but for months / years. Does our body adapt and do the fat cells than have normal insulin sensitivity? More research is definitely needed.

More sleep helps children in school

Here is an article about how more sleep helps kids - seems obvious but at least here is some scientific evidence. For kids that got more sleep, they were less emotional, better focused, and better behaved. There are some good tips in the article for parents as well - monitor for sleepiness, which should be relatively low at a elementary age if they are getting enough sleep.

Newer sleep aids are associated with falls in elderly

Older sleep aids that are related to Valium have been shown to increase falls in elderly patients, especially those with dementia. This article shows how elderly people are at much higher risk of falls with the newer sleep aids like Ambien.

CPAP use and high blood pressure.

It's well known that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is linked to high blood pressure (HTN). However, it's less clear that CPAP reduces HTN. In the October edition of Journal of clinical Sleep Medicine is a study attempting to show just that. Researchers studied veterans with known OSA who also had HTN and diabetes (DM). They monitored their CPAP use and followed them for upto one year.

Results showed that both systolic and diastolic blood pressure decreased significantly with CPAP use. This effect was most prominent with African-American patients, but still present in European-Americans. Interestingly, CPAP use did not reduce the subjects fasting blood sugar levels or long term blood sugar control as measured by their hemoglobin A1C.

Obstructive sleep apnea and coronary atherosclerosis

This article discusses research about obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and coronary artery plaques, which are blockages in the arteries supplying the heart with blood. The softer the plaque, the more dangerous it is. The results showed that more severe OSA was associated with more soft plaque formation. Also, the more severe the OSA, the greater chance of having more than one artery with plaque. This was a small study, and more research needs to be done to determine if CPAP reduces the atherosclerosis.

Non-sleep aids being used to treat insomnia

This article discusses a concerning trend in the treatment of insomnia - physicians are prescribing less traditional sleep aids in favor of using non-traditional medications that are sedating, like anti-epilepsy and anti-psychotic medications. Although these medications can be safe when used for their indicated diseases, there is very little data to support their use in insomnia. The results highlight the difficulty in treating it with medications. Usually, physicians will start with the typical sleep aids like Ambien. When those stop working, other medications are tried such as the ones listed above. However, for long term treatment of insomnia, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) has been shown to be superior. The problem is that too few doctors know how to do CBT and it is much more difficult to implement than just taking a pill.