Talk:Sleep

"Hours by age" chart

I've got a serious problem with even including this chart. It's based on a single 'source,' which is an internet article written by 4 authors, none considered an international expert in sleep research. There is NO research, not 1 citation, presented to support the "average" sleep #'s presented; it is all anecdotal. (In fact, average world adult sleep appears to be more like 6.5-7.5 hrs. according to a few studies I quickly found. Presentation of this single, unsourced chart on the Wiki page makes it appear to be "the" authoritative chart of optimal/average sleep for all ages. And people might rely on this chart to make lifestyle changes and/or child-rearing choices. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.83.70.117 (talk) 06:53, 16 February 2010 (UTC)

Those are reasonably accurate figures that are presented in medical sleep text such as Principles and Practices of Sleep Medicine, Sleep Research Society Slides, Atlas of Clincal Sleep Medicine, etc. We could only be so lucky for people to use these figures to make lifestyle changes and/or child-rearing choices... especially child-rearing choices. Cronides2 (talk) 21:45, 24 February 2011 (UTC)

Natural versus cultural

Sleep = stated as natural, however sleep is cultural defined. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 84.194.101.121 (talk) 04:45, 6 March 2010 (UTC)

Can you justify that statement on the basis of anything that has been published? Looie496 (talk) 17:19, 6 March 2010 (UTC)

Sleep in non-humans

I propose that the the phrase "lower order animals" in the "sleep in non-humans" section be removed. There's no such thing as "lower" animals, scientifically speaking. Not even insects can scientifically or factually be referred to as "lower animals." There are humans and non-humans. When people say "more evolved" or "lower animals," Darwin wakes up in his grave and sheds a wee little tear. Askantik (talk) 15:39, 22 April 2010 (UTC)

Done. The phrase bothers me too. How to define lower-order: animals who can't even fly nor navigate as well as bees, for example?

(-; Hordaland (talk) 16:01, 22 April 2010 (UTC)

Hordaland: I think the definition you're looking for is 'more complex', a good measure of which is the transcriptosome or better still proteome (both well-worth looking-up if you're scientifically-minded.) —Preceding unsigned comment added by Neostratus (talk • contribs) 19:27, 11 September 2010 (UTC)

Genetics Section needs improvement or removal

I just made an edit to that section. It was/is poor. There in no real info there. It sited examples as fact, when they clearly where not to be presented that way.

The source is terrible, just a "by line" really. it was written in 2009 about a study completed in 2001 with a factoid about insomnia statistics from 2006 to keep it from being too dated.

Also the inclusion of the specific gene, not sited BTW, is irrelevant to the article unless this section becomes vastly more in depth. It was also placed in a confusing manner and linked to a wiki page that is serving as a place holder.

So, fix it or nix it? I doubt it will be missed. Ken Zug (talk) 08:55, 17 July 2010 (UTC) —Preceding unsigned comment added by KwZug (talk • contribs) 08:52, 17 July 2010 (UTC)

Dreaming

According to Wilson & McNaughton (1994) Reactivation of hippocampal ensemble memories during sleep, Science, 265, 676-679, there is a correlation between neural activity recorded during awakened state and during the sleep afterwards (tested on rats). This suggests that the brain is processing the information gained during the day, and possibly reactivates the fresh memories to update the synaptic connection in neocortex, which requires iterative learning. Is this theory worth mentioning in the article? Niky cz (talk) 16:05, 11 August 2010 (UTC)

I've heard of that. Interesting stuff. I don't think there is room for it in Sleep. Maybe better in Dream, Sleep and learning or Sleep and Memory. --Hordaland (talk) 17:53, 11 August 2010 (UTC)

Nonpharmocological sleep disorder treatments: white noise

I added a 2002 article Evidence based complementary intervention for insomnia about white noise. The article doesn't have a ton of support so it would be nice to find more information. There's not many studies: Forquer & Johnson's Continuous White Noise to Reduce Sleep Latency and Night Wakings in College Students had only 4 people, and a couple reviews (The use of alternative medicine for the treatment of insomnia in the elderly and Nonpharmacologic techniques for promoting sleep) don't seem to mention much about it in their abstracts; I may try to get a hold of the full papers. I began using an air filter in my room to provide white noise and I've been waking up substantially more rested. II | (t - c) 06:39, 16 December 2010 (UTC)

sleep naked

where should I add the sleep Preferences like sleep in pj,sleep naked and ext. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Teluna (talk • contribs) 08:26, 26 January 2011 (UTC)

Article presumes that sleep is necessary

I don't see any hard evidence proving that sleep is essential for human survival. But this article goes on to declare 'optimal amounts' and to discuss 'sleep debt'. Very presumptuous if you ask me. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.85.14.106 (talk) 20:49, 19 February 2011 (UTC)

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There is plenty of evidence that sleep deprivation has adverse effects... just do a quick search in Pubmed you'll find lots of articles. Gould80 (talk) 08:07, 28 April 2011 (UTC)

Sleep graph

The graph (midnight to 6 am) doesn't show a normal night's sleep. For example are there only two N4 stages in a normal night's sleep? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 122.61.61.161 (talk) 06:04, 26 February 2011 (UTC)

Polar day/night

Is anyone familiar with any research about the effect of 24-hour sun or lack of sun (midnight sun/polar night) on sleep, or on other aspects of physiology? I didn't see any discussion of it in this article, and midnight sun and polar night have only brief, unreferenced sections about it. I'm especially interested if effects differ significantly between visitors to the polar regions, people who have lived there for several years, people who grew up there, and people who have a long ancestry from the region (Inuit, Sami, etc.). StephenHudson (talk) 20:24, 13 March 2011 (UTC)

REM atonia & sleep paralysis

Should there be any mention of the possible relationship between the atonia occurring in REM sleep and the phenomenon of sleep paralysis? Not being an expert on the subject, I am not certain if they are as related as my own experiences would indicate. 216.82.142.13 (talk) 20:35, 5 May 2011 (UTC)