Sleep

Sleep is a physiological behavior that is common in all animal species. It forms around one third of a human life. It is not known clearly the exact functions of sleep but it seems to be essential for survival as prolonged sleep deprivation leads to severe physical impairment followed by cognitive loss and eventually death.

How Morning Routines Influence Cognitive Performance, Mood, and Circadian Rhythm

How simple, evidence-based morning habits recalibrate the circadian system to sharpen cognition, stabilize mood, and support long-term mental health.

Health Effects of Poor Sleep - Quantity and Quality

Sleep Hygiene

Stimulants and Sleep

Regulation of Sleep

Effect of Sleep on Your Emotions

Neuroscience of Sleep

What is the Circadian Rhythm?

Types of Sleep Disorders

Brain Activity During Sleep

How to Catch up on Lost Sleep

Stages of Sleep

See more featured articles »

What is the Role of Melatonin in Sleep Regulation?

What is Sleep?

Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder (DSPD) Management

Circadian Rhythm Sleep Disorders

How Can Mindfulness Meditation Improve Sleep?

Nutritional Effects on Sleep

Is Daytime Napping in Adults Good or Bad?

Tips on Getting to Sleep

Hypnotics and Sleep

What Does Polysomnography Involve?

How Can Sleep Affect Men's Health?

How Long Should My Teenager Sleep For?

Causes of Sleep Deprivation

Why Do We Dream?

How Much Sleep do People Need?

How Does Sleep Affect Your Immunity?

Can too much sleep be dangerous?

How Long should my Child Sleep for?

A Guide to Healthy Sleep Positions

Sleep Onset Mechanics: Understanding the Transition from Wakefulness to Slumber

Sleep and Yoga

The Importance of Having a Good Night’s Sleep

Sleep and Hormones

Function of Sleep

Role of Sleep in Memory Consolidation

Causes of Nocturnal Awakenings

Could Humans Ever Hibernate?

What is Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder (DSPD)?

Shift Work Sleep Disorder

Promoting Sounder Sleep in Older Adults

The DEC2 Gene and Sleep

REM Sleep Activity

How Does Pain Affect Your Sleep?

Importance of Sleep

Ghrelin and Sleep

Management of Sleep Deprivation

Spoon Test for Sleep Deprivation

Difference Between Nightmares and Night Terrors

What is Sleep Regression?

Sleep Deprivation - Inadequate Quantity of Sleep

The Health Risks of Oversleeping

Effects of Sleep Deprivation

Why Do We Sleep?

Does Your Alarm Sound Affect Your Mood?

A Guide to Managing Sleep Disorders

History of Sleep

Latest Sleep News and Research

University of Surrey team develops first grief tool for unpaid carers

The first dedicated support tool for unpaid carers who grieve for an older person they care for before they have died is being developed by a team led by the University of Surrey.

30 Jun 2026

Extreme heat and cold threaten health of people with dementia

Exposure to extreme heat and cold is associated with an increased risk of emergency department (ED) visits among people living with dementia, according to preliminary research presented today at the European Academy of Neurology (EAN) Congress 2026.

29 Jun 2026

Study highlights potential heart dangers from e-cigarette chemicals

Is vaping bad for my health? As people who use e-cigarettes and their loved ones pose questions like this, growing scientific evidence shows that the answer is yes.

29 Jun 2026

Daily weather fluctuations affect mental health service demand in England

New research led by the University of East Anglia (UEA) suggests even modest, short-term changes in weather can have a measurable impact on NHS mental health service demand across England.

29 Jun 2026

Telehealth mindfulness program reduces chronic low back pain

Low back pain affects over 600 million people and is the single leading cause of disability worldwide.

29 Jun 2026

Melatonin dampens fetal membrane inflammation linked to preterm birth

Melatonin reduced infection-related inflammation in human fetal membranes in an ex vivo model. The study suggests that this effect works partly through melatonin receptors and by suppressing the TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB pathway.

28 Jun 2026

Nasal viruses may drive allergic rhinitis, and ribavirin shows early promise as a targeted spray treatment

Nasal commensal viruses may worsen allergic rhinitis by activating type I IFN-linked neutrophils and NET formation. Ribavirin reduced nasal viral abundance and improved symptoms in mice and in a small phase 2 trial.

28 Jun 2026

Multi-decade study tracks subsequent cancer risks in survivors

As people continue to live longer and the survival rate of cancer diagnoses increases, researchers from VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center led a multi-decade analysis studying the rates of subsequent primary cancers (SPCs), which are new cancers unrelated to the original diagnosis.

26 Jun 2026

Breastfeeding linked to longer sleep duration in one year old infants

The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life because of its many proven benefits, including protection against infections and support for healthy long-term development.

26 Jun 2026

Neuroticism and adversity dominate depression and anxiety risk in UK Biobank study

In a UK Biobank study of 87,648 adults followed for 13.7 years, psychosocial factors accounted for the largest estimated population burden of depression and anxiety in both women and men. Neuroticism symptoms, childhood and adult adversity, obesity, chronic inflammation, and some reproductive factors in women were linked to incident mental health outcomes, although the PAF estimates remain theoretical and not proof of causality.

25 Jun 2026

Good oral health could improve athletic performance

Millions of fans around the world will be glued to screens in the coming weeks to watch remarkable displays of speed, precision and endurance in the world's most important football competition.

25 Jun 2026

Musculoskeletal pain in children is often underestimated and misunderstood

Three out of every ten Brazilian children and adolescents complain of musculoskeletal pain (affecting bones, ligaments, and muscles).

25 Jun 2026

Study links COVID-19 to higher sleep apnea risk years after infection

Researchers analyzed more than 910,000 adults and found that SARS-CoV-2 infection was associated with a higher adjusted risk of new-onset obstructive sleep apnea up to 4.5 years later. The association appeared in both hospitalized and non-hospitalized COVID-19 patients, supporting targeted screening in higher-risk post-COVID groups while highlighting the need for objective sleep testing.

24 Jun 2026

Melatonin improves skin flap survival by reducing ferroptosis

Random-pattern skin flaps are widely used to repair defects caused by trauma, burns, tumor removal, and other injuries because they can be designed without depending on a single named blood vessel.

23 Jun 2026

Circadian rhythm influences calorie burning after eating

Han-Chow Koh, PhD, and Frank A.J.L. Scheer, PhD, of the Medical Chronobiology Program at the Division of Sleep and Circadian Medicine in the Mass General Brigham Department of Medicine, are the co-lead and senior author, respectively, of a paper published in Metabolism, "Constant-routine protocol reveals an endogenous circadian rhythm in diet-induced thermogenesis with a peak in the biological morning."

23 Jun 2026

A night without sleep alters neural connections in human brains

A night without sleep produced increased markers of connections between brain cells, showing that sleep in humans may be important for restoring cellular balance in the brain, according to a study published June 23rd in the open access journal PLOS Biology by David Elmenhorst from the Forschungszentrum Jülich Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, and colleagues.

23 Jun 2026

Electroacupuncture at Lianquan point restores post-stroke swallowing function

Swallowing is a complex act requiring precise coordination of the mouth, throat, and voice box. After a stroke, damage to the brain's motor cortex can disrupt swallowing-related neural commands, leaving patients unable to clear food or liquid from their throat safely.

23 Jun 2026

Trial identifies 4 grams a day as the tested safe level for L-tyrosine in healthy men

A randomized, crossover trial in healthy adult men found that 4 weeks of L-tyrosine supplementation at doses up to 4 g/day did not cause clinically meaningful changes in safety markers, diet, blood pressure, or body measures. The highest tested dose, 4 g/day, was identified as the no-observed-adverse-effect level under the study’s four-week conditions, although broader and longer-term studies are still needed.

23 Jun 2026

Study links genes and sleep habits to Alzheimer's risk

New research from Edith Cowan University (ECU) has discovered an important link between our genes and sleep habits, suggesting they work together to influence early brain and cognitive changes associated with Alzheimer's Disease, long before symptoms appear.

22 Jun 2026