It’s official: active kids sleep better

October 12th, 2009 LONDON - Researchers have developed a computer programme, which can analyse the snoring pattern of people to help diagnose a specific sleep disorder. Doctors at University of Queensland and the Princess Alexandra Hospital assessed the snoring of 20 patients with sleep apnoea by first recording it.

October 1st, 2009 WASHINGTON - Long-term alcoholism can have detrimental effects on a person's sleep despite long periods of abstinence, according to a study. And the above pattern is similar in both men and women.

September 11th, 2009 MELBOURNE - Australian scientists have come up with a non-invasive screening tool for detecting obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA). Snoring is a very early symptom of sleep apnoea, however, monitoring the changes in pitch, frequency and other characteristics of the snores can help detect OSA.

September 9th, 2009 WASHINGTON - A drug initially used to treat seizures improves sleep quality in menopausal women with hot flashes, claims a new study. University of Rochester Medical Center researchers have reported the finding online and in the September issue of the Journal of Women's Health.

September 6th, 2009 LONDON - Are you feeling powerless as a parent? Then, here's some food for thought: a new research has claimed that a mother's beliefs even before her baby is born predict how well her infant will sleep at night later. According to researchers in Israel, if an expectant mum thinks that babies who cry at night are suffering distress and need comforting and soothing back to sleep, then her newborn is likely to wake more frequently during the night than if she believes babies should learn to settle themselves.

June 12th, 2009 WASHINGTON - According to a new study, Body Mass Index (BMI) varies as a function of habitual sleep duration. The study has been presented at SLEEP 2009, the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies.

June 8th, 2009 WASHINGTON - No matter how much a person works out during the day, their exertion fails to translate into increased total sleep time at night, according to a study. The researchers observed that days with increased activity were followed by nights with lower total sleep time (TST), while nights with lower TST were followed by increased activities during the next day.

June 8th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Kids who do not take daytime naps are more likely to experience hyperactivity, depression and anxiety, according to a study. The study results revealed that parents of children-between the ages of 4 and 5 who did not take daytime naps-said that they exhibited higher levels of hyperactivity, anxiety and depression than those who continued to nap at this age.

June 8th, 2009 WASHINGTON - Television watching may be an important determinant of bedtime and may contribute to sleep debt, according to the latest research. The study included 21,475 people aged 15 or older.

April 28th, 2009 LONDON - Sleep deprivation among children is likely to trigger behavioural problems, including symptoms similar to attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder or ADHD. ADHD which afflicts boys, is characterized by a very short attention span, impulsiveness and hyperactivity.

April 14th, 2009 LONDON - A developing foetus can enter a dream sleep-like state weeks before the first rapid eye movements are seen, according to a discovery by neuroscientists and mathematicians. The first rapid eye movements are discernible during the seventh month of foetal development.

April 6th, 2009 LONDON - Kids who are allowed to visit friends and go shopping on their own are more active, according to a new study. Researchers at the University of Bristol tracked the movements of 1,307 children using GPS technology.

March 21st, 2009 LONDON - Eight out of ten British kids are addicted to their mobile phones, a new survey has found. According to www.youngpoll.com, one in three children feel "alone" without the phone and almost half sleep next to it.

February 1st, 2009 LONDON - Genetics could help explain the link between sleep problems in early life and later development of depression, according to a study. Results of the study show that sleep problems foreshadow depression, and are consistent with the theory that early treatment of sleep problems may protect children from the development of depression.

January 17th, 2009 LONDON - British supermodel Kate Moss' 35th 'noisy' birthday bash disturbed her neighbours so much that they were compelled to call the police twice in a row. Dailyamil.co.uk reports, the police came twice during the night following complaints and Camden Council anti-noise patrols asked for the music to be turned down at her house.