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Bad sleep 'dramatically' alters body

bbc.co.uk

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Re: Bad sleep 'dramatically' alters body

#51

Post by alphadogg »

This is yet another example of bad science journalism. The fact is: Different sleep patterns correlates to different gene expression patterns.

From that, wild conjecture.

How do we know "great sleepers" express only more of the better proteins? I could just as much theorize that better sleep leads to more proteins which could lead to more deposits.

Did they control for cognitive function? We know that different people need different amounts of sleep to function properly. How do the patterns shift for a long sleeper vs a short sleeper.

My general approach is to tease out the facts and go to the original source. As an ex-neurosceintist, I often get irritated at the "sciencey press" that follows.

Re: Bad sleep 'dramatically' alters body

#52

Post by glesica »

michaelbuckbee wrote: post #49
jacques_chester wrote: post #9

Here's a little PSA: If you have: * High blood pressure * Depressive or angry episodes * Wake up tired no matter how long you've slept * Loud snoring Take a sleep study. You may have obstructive sleep apnea. I got it badly enough that sleeping for 14-15 hours daily did nothing for me. I didn't realise it at the time but I was on track to die, tired, at about 50. Today I sleep with a little CPAP machine that keeps my…

All extremely good advice, but the whole process of getting a CPAP machine drives me bonkers (at least in the US). A CPAP machine is a couple hundred dollars [1] (certainly less than a thousand) and everyone I've ever spoken to about one has either instantly, the first night of using one had a tremendous dramatic improvement in their sleep or it was sort of 'meh'. Given the costs and extremely minor risks (we're talk…

This is a really good criticism of the current system. I know someone who attempted to get a sleep study done but insurance denied it. The doctor's response was basically "oh well, looks like there's nothing we can do".

Re: Bad sleep 'dramatically' alters body

#53

Post by gdilla »

I was diagnosed with OSA, and chose to use a newish alternative to surgery or CPAP, the provent strip http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/07/14/sleep-apnea-fix/ I keep ripping it off in my sleep and can't tell if it's working. Ultimately, they said I would get used to it. You need a prescription and after getting used to it, you have to go in for a follow up sleep study so they can see if it actually works for you.

Re: Bad sleep 'dramatically' alters body

#54

Post by Kaivo »

I used to sleep from 9:30 PM to 7:30 AM when I was in High School and I never had to study a single bit. I just remembered what I was taught in class without any trouble and aced most of my classes.

When I reached college, I got a late night job and started to sleep from 4 to 6 hours a day for about 2 years. My grades dropped badly; I couldn't remember what I was hearing in classes, I wasn't able to stay focus for as long and I ended up failing classes on my last semester.

It's probably the things that I fear the most from the lack of sleep, not being able to use my brain efficiently when I'm awake.

I remember reading about the fact that the first few hours of sleep are mostly there to physically rebuild the body, while the last hours of sleep are helping mostly with the memory. I don't have sources and considering the current article, I doubt it's as definite as what I read a while ago but might be interesting to read about more extensively.

Re: Bad sleep 'dramatically' alters body

#55

Post by svachalek »

jberryman wrote: post #25
michaelgrafl wrote: post #16

In the past few weeks I've been shitty to my girlfriend a few times after a night of bad sleep (interrupted sleep and more dreaming than normally). I figured out that I sleep a lot better - especially when sharing a bed with her - when I omit drinking alcohol, even small amounts. So maybe that's worth a try for people suffering from light sleep.

I've found this to be true. I also find I sleep more soundly and feel much better in the morning if I drink a big glass of water before bed too sort of "tank up"; otherwise I end up waking several times throughout the night. Oh, also the amount of light in a room is huge for me, which I didn't realize until I moved and had thick curtains installed.

Or vice versa. I sleep a lot better when I time things such that I sleep with an empty bladder.

Re: Bad sleep 'dramatically' alters body

#56

Post by jfb »

JabavuAdams wrote: post #17
jfb wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Good stuff. My dad had apnea so bad he had to have his nose and sinuses redrilled. I'm looking forward to the study.

Wow! That's unfortunate. The message I've been getting from my ENT is that he'd only advocate surgery if the patient wasn't tolerating the CPAP. I.e. at higher pressure settings it might be uncomfortable, and reshaping the airways could help with that. For me, I just pretend I'm Prometheus in an interstellar cold-sleep casket. I love the mask -- badass!

The other crazy thing is that his face now looks very different than it did when I was a kid. Old pictures don't look like the same person, doesn't fit my memory, &c. Perhaps he died and was replaced with a deep-cover Soviet spy?

Re: Bad sleep 'dramatically' alters body

#57

Post by tome »

jacques_chester wrote: post #9

Here's a little PSA: If you have: * High blood pressure * Depressive or angry episodes * Wake up tired no matter how long you've slept * Loud snoring Take a sleep study. You may have obstructive sleep apnea. I got it badly enough that sleeping for 14-15 hours daily did nothing for me. I didn't realise it at the time but I was on track to die, tired, at about 50. Today I sleep with a little CPAP machine that keeps my…

Could you summarize exactly what a sleep study involves?

Re: Bad sleep 'dramatically' alters body

#58

Post by liber8 »

username111 wrote: post #46
eCa wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Obama 2004 (43 yo): http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/picturegalleries/worldnews/9... Obama 2011 (50 yo): http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/picturegalleries/worldnews/9... Not much hair color left..

Well that is a time where a lot of people lose their hair color.

People lose their hair color due (primarily) to a lack of catalase, which normally removes hydrogen peroxide. It is now thought that much of this work is done during sleep. So, assuming this theory is true, a lack of sleep (an effect every president has mentioned) does cause people to go gray.

Re: Bad sleep 'dramatically' alters body

#59

Post by ninetax »

eCa wrote: post #44
droidist2 wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Good point. They always say that about Presidents, they age like 20 years in 8 years.

Obama 2004 (43 yo): http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/picturegalleries/worldnews/9... Obama 2011 (50 yo): http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/picturegalleries/worldnews/9... Not much hair color left..

It's an exaggeration, but maybe if the 2nd term doesn't go so well, this is what he could look like in 2016.

http://www.loop21.com/politics/how-obama-will-look-2016

Re: Bad sleep 'dramatically' alters body

#60

Post by felipe »

tome wrote: post #57
jacques_chester wrote: post #9

Here's a little PSA: If you have: * High blood pressure * Depressive or angry episodes * Wake up tired no matter how long you've slept * Loud snoring Take a sleep study. You may have obstructive sleep apnea. I got it badly enough that sleeping for 14-15 hours daily did nothing for me. I didn't realise it at the time but I was on track to die, tired, at about 50. Today I sleep with a little CPAP machine that keeps my…

Could you summarize exactly what a sleep study involves?

Basically you sleep in a hotel-like room but with a bunch of wiring hooked-up to your head and body. It's painless, except for the discomfort of sleeping with all those wires. The "output" of the test is an index called AHI, which indicates your level of apnea. AHI > 5 means you might need a CPAP or some other kind of apnea treatment.
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