Insomnia Research

Scientists at The University of Manchester have solved a mystery connected with why people die from sudden cardiac arrest during sleep -- potentially saving thousands of lives.

A team from the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC) and McGill University has made a major breakthrough by unraveling the inner workings of melatonin, also known as the "sleep hormone." The research, conducted in collaboration with scientists in Italy,...

Exposure to even dim light at night is enough to cause physical changes in the brains of hamsters that may be associated with depression, a new study shows. Researchers found that female Siberian hamsters exposed to dim light every night for eight weeks showed significant changes in a part of the brain called the hippocampus.

Patients who suffer from obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) also tend to have additional gastrointestinal (GI) tract conditions, such as gastric reflux and hiatal hernia, which form at the opening in your diaphragm where your food pipe (esophagus) joins your stomach. In a paper presented at the 2009 American Academy of Otolaryngology...

The discovery of the brain cell which determines our sleep patterns could pave the way for the introduction of a pill to beat jetlag. A pill that cures jet lag is a step closer today, after scientists discovered how signals from the brain control our biological clocks. Tests on mice suggested the human body clock - controlled by a region of the brain called the suprachiasmatic nuclei...

Mahatma Gandhi was once asked by a reporter what he thought about western civilization, and in light of the uncivilized treatment by the British government of his nonviolent actions, he immediately replied, "Western civilization? Yes, it is a good idea." Likewise, if he were asked what he thought about "scientific medicine," he would probably have replied in a similar manner.

Study links lack of sleep to risk of early death Sleeping consistently for less than six hours a night has been linked to an increased risk of early death. Sleeping consistently for less than six hours a night may cause an early death, but too much sleep could also mean problems, according to a study that claims to have found unequivocal evidence of the potential harm from abnormal sleep patterns.

Reporting at the American Headache Society's 52nd Annual Scientific Meeting in Los Angeles, scientists say new research shows that sleep deprivation leads to changes in the levels of key proteins that facilitate events involved in the underlying pathology of migraine.

Protein -- not sugar -- stimulates cells keeping us thin and awake, a new study suggests. A new study has found that protein and not sugar activates the cells responsible for keeping us awake and burning calories. The research, published in the Nov. 17 issue of the scientific journal Neuron, has...

Experts at the University of Surrey discovered that many older people felt that they may be branded lazy for taking afternoon naps so they tried hard to avoid nodding off. But the occasional nap can make older people more able to lead a fully active life by giving them enough energy to take part in recreational and social activities.

According to a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM), exposure to electrical light between dusk and bedtime strongly suppresses melatonin levels and may impact physiologic processes regulated by melatonin signaling, such as sleepiness, thermoregulation, blood pressure and glucose homeostasis.

A paper by University of Notre Dame biologist Giles Duffield and a team of researchers offers new insights into a gene that plays a key role in modulating the body's circadian system and may also simultaneously modulate its metabolic system. The relationship between circadian and metabolic systems the researchers describe could have important implications for understanding the higher incidence of cardiovascular disease, obesity and diabetes among...