Every single day there are thousands of lab coated geniuses out there pushing the envelope of scientific knowledge further and further. It is easy to forget in our daily lives, but some people spend their days experimenting in a huge range of scientific fields and disciplines and the things that they are discovering can have huge impacts on our lives.
One exciting area of research is sleep. We all sleep, yet for so long we have not really understood that much about it. Now though, with the huge amount of awesome experiments and studies that are being conducted, we are finally starting to understand the underlying mechanics of sleep and the ways that we can improve and manipulate our sleep. So what experiments are we talking about? Here are eight incredible sleep experiments you probably didn't know about.
Experiment One-- The sleep switch
The first set of experiments are being conducted at Oxford University and are focused on finding out how we fall asleep. They have just discovered that there is a ‘switch’ that is flicked by a certain molecule that puts us to sleep. This switch is literally the switch for consciousness. It is the same switch that is thrown when we are anaesthetised. The researchers have found the molecule that throws the switch and in coming years we could have a way of simply switching on and off consciousness. Good bye insomnia forever.
Experiment Two-- Appetite regulation
Another set of experiments have been looking at the connection between sleep and our appetite. Researchers had noticed that the levels of the two hormones that regulate our appetite, ghrelin and leptin, were at different concentrations depending on sleep amounts. They decided to dig a bit deeper and found that the connection was direct and consistent. In individuals who are sleep deprived (meaning just an hour less than normal), the leptin levels are lower while the ghrelin levels are higher. Leptin reduces appetite and ghrelin increases it. Less sleep means you are hungrier.
Experiment Three-- Emotional control
In a third experiment researchers are looking at the connection between sleep and emotion. If you have felt that after a bad night’s sleep you are more easily upset and that your emotional stability suffers in general then you are not alone and there is scientific evidence to back it up. It seems that sleep plays a role in regulating our emotions. In particular the REM period of sleep is vital to our emotions and if we have even just 20 minutes less REM sleep people will be far more emotionally unstable.
Experiment Four--Memory recall
Sleep and memory have also been long linked but it has only been recently during a set of experiments that researchers have really proven how connected they are. It turns out that even an hour less sleep a night can have a dramatic impact on the ability to recall facts and information from the day before. Sleep is a time when the memories are processed and stored ready to be recalled. The most important time for this is during the REM sleep so if that is broken then the memory recall will be severely compromised.
Experiment Five-- Brain washing
Brain washing may sound like something that the KGB do, but recent research has shown that we all wash our brains each night. As the brain works during the day a number of toxic chemicals build up. When we go to sleep our brains actually shrink to a smaller size, leaving more gaps between the brain. The body washes the brain out while we sleep as it is the most opportune moment. While researching this the experimenters found that those people who had chronic sleep problems were more likely to get Alzheimer’s and other brain related conditions. They believe that the toxins are responsible for the brain degradation that causes these neurological issues.
Experiment Six-- Consolidate motor skills
Not only does sleep play a role in our memory but it also helps with muscle memory. A number of recent experiments have shown that people who learn a new task the day before and have a good night’s sleep are far more likely to be able to remember the motor skills needed for that task than those who didn’t sleep well. One experiment looked at piano players who had been taught a new song and found a massive difference between those who’d slept well and those who hadn’t.
Experiment Seven-- Gender sleep differences
Ladies, you have a good reason for being more tired than your partner. A new set of experiments has found that women need more sleep than men. The experimenters found that women need around an hour extra each night to have the same levels of restedness as men. Another study found that women spend more time in bed than men but less time asleep, indicating that women are struggling more with sleep related issues than men.
Experiment Eight-- Depression
There has long been recognised a connection between sleep and depression but a recent study proved it, it showed that sleep duration and depression levels are connected. The study looked at 1,788 adult twins and discovered a gene that is linked to both sleep duration and depressive symptoms. The findings suggest that people who have shorter sleep periods than the normal seven or so hours a night have increased genetic risk for depressive symptoms.
If you think that science is sleeping you are wrong. Every single day new discoveries about sleep are being made and while some may not have much influence on your life, others could hold incredible future promise so fingers crossed that these researchers are able to turn these scientific discoveries into actionable real world treatments and inventions so that we can all benefit from them.
One take home from all of the above is that getting the right amount of sleep (roughly 7 hours) each and every night is the single best thing you can do with regard to your sleep health and health in general.
On the land and waters that we sleep, we walk, and we live, we acknowledge the Traditional Owners and Custodians of these lands. We pay respects to Elders past, present and emerging, and recognise their connection to the land.
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Kila siku kuna maelfu ya mafundi wa kisayansi wanaopiga marufuku maarifa ya kisayansi. Ni rahisi kusahau katika maisha yetu ya kila siku, lakini watu wengine hutumia siku zao kufanya majaribio katika safu kubwa ya nyanja za kisayansi na taaluma, na vitu wanavyogundua vinaweza kuwa na athari kubwa kwenye maisha yetu. Sehemu moja yenye kusisimua ya utafiti ni usingizi. Sisi sote tunalala, lakini kwa muda mrefu hatujaelewa mengi kuhusu hilo. Lakini sasa, kwa kiasi kikubwa cha majaribio na masomo ya ajabu ambayo yanafanywa, hatimaye tunaanza kuelewa utaratibu wa msingi wa usingizi na njia ambazo tunaweza kuboresha na kudhibiti usingizi wetu. Kwa hiyo ni majaribio gani tunayozungumzia? Hapa kuna majaribio nane ya kulala ambayo labda hujui. Majaribio ya kwanza ya Sleep Switch, ambayo ilifanyika katika Chuo Kikuu cha Oxford, ilijaribu kugundua jinsi watu wanavyolala. Wamegundua tu kwamba kuna "switch" ambayo huendeshwa na molekuli fulani inayotufanya tulale. Hii ni literally switch kwa ajili ya ufahamu. Ni kubadili sawa ambayo ni kutupwa wakati sisi ni anesthetized. Watafiti wamepata molekuli ambayo hutumia kubadili na katika miaka ijayo tunaweza kuwa na njia ya tu kubadili juu na nje ya ufahamu. Bye bye insomnia milele. Majaribio ya pili: Udhibiti wa hamu ya kula Mfano mwingine wa majaribio umekuwa ukiangalia uhusiano kati ya usingizi na hamu yetu ya kula. Watafiti walipata kwamba viwango vya homoni mbili zinazodhibiti hamu yetu ya kula, ghrelin na leptin, vilikuwa tofauti kulingana na kiasi cha usingizi. Waliamua kuchimba kina zaidi na kugundua kwamba uhusiano huo ulikuwa wa moja kwa moja na wenye upatano. Katika watu ambao ni kulala chini (yaani saa moja tu chini ya kawaida), viwango vya leptin ni chini wakati viwango vya ghrelin ni juu. Leptin hupunguza hamu ya kula na ghrelin huongeza hamu ya kula. Kulala kidogo kunamaanisha kuwa una njaa zaidi. Majaribio ya tatu: Udhibiti wa hisia Katika jaribio la tatu watafiti wanaangalia uhusiano kati ya usingizi na hisia. Kama umesikia kwamba baada ya usingizi mbaya usiku wewe ni rahisi zaidi kuchanganyikiwa na kwamba utulivu wako wa kihisia huathiriwa kwa ujumla basi wewe si peke yake na kuna ushahidi wa kisayansi kuunga mkono hilo. Inaonekana kwamba usingizi unahusika katika kudhibiti hisia zetu. REM ni kipindi cha usingizi muhimu sana kwa hisia zetu, na ikiwa tunapata hata dakika 20 za usingizi wa REM kidogo, watu watakuwa na wasiwasi zaidi. Utafiti wa nne: Kumbukumbu ya kumbukumbu: usingizi na kumbukumbu pia zimeunganishwa kwa muda mrefu, lakini ni hivi karibuni tu wakati wa seti ya majaribio ambayo watafiti wamethibitisha jinsi wanavyounganishwa. Hata usingizi wa saa moja usiku mmoja unaweza kuwa na athari kubwa kwa uwezo wa kukumbuka ukweli na habari kutoka siku iliyotangulia. Usingizi ni wakati ambapo kumbukumbu zinashughulikiwa na kuhifadhiwa tayari kukumbukwa. Wakati wa kulala ni wakati wa REM, na wakati huo huo kumbukumbu ya kumbukumbu itaathiriwa. "Kama ""kuosha ubongo"" inaweza kuonekana kama kitu KGB kufanya, lakini utafiti wa hivi karibuni umeonyesha kwamba sisi wote kunawa ubongo wetu kila usiku." Ubongo unapofanya kazi wakati wa mchana kemikali kadhaa zenye sumu hufanyizwa. Wakati tunapolala, ubongo wetu hupungua kwa ukubwa mdogo na kuacha nafasi kubwa kati ya ubongo. Mwili huosha ubongo wakati tunapolala, kwani ni wakati mzuri zaidi. Wakati wa kutafiti hili watafiti walipata kwamba wale watu ambao walikuwa na matatizo ya usingizi wa kudumu walikuwa na uwezekano mkubwa wa kupata Alzheimer's na hali nyingine zinazohusiana na ubongo. Wanaamini kwamba sumu hizo ndizo husababisha uharibifu wa ubongo unaosababisha matatizo hayo ya neva. Majaribio ya sita: Kuimarisha ujuzi wa magari Usingizi sio tu una jukumu katika kumbukumbu yetu lakini pia husaidia na kumbukumbu ya misuli. Utafiti wa hivi karibuni umeonyesha kuwa watu ambao hujifunza kazi mpya siku ya awali na kulala vizuri usiku ni uwezekano mkubwa zaidi wa kukumbuka ujuzi wa magari unaohitajika kwa kazi hiyo kuliko wale ambao hawakufanya vizuri. Jaribio moja lilitazama wachezaji wa piano ambao walikuwa wamefundishwa wimbo mpya na kupata tofauti kubwa kati ya wale ambao walikuwa wamelala vizuri na wale ambao hawakuwa wamefanya hivyo. Utafiti wa 7 - Tofauti za Kulala za Jinsia Wanawake, Una Sababu Nzuri ya Kuwa Uchovu Zaidi kuliko Mshirika Wako Utafiti mpya unaonyesha kuwa wanawake wanahitaji usingizi zaidi kuliko wanaume. Watafiti walipata kwamba wanawake wanahitaji saa moja zaidi kila usiku ili kuwa na kiwango sawa cha kupumzika kama wanaume. Utafiti mwingine unaonyesha kwamba wanawake hutumia muda mwingi kitandani kuliko wanaume, lakini wakati mdogo wa kulala, na hivyo kuonyesha kuwa wanawake wana matatizo zaidi ya kulala kuliko wanaume. Utafiti wa 8 - Ugonjwa wa Unyogovu: Kuna uhusiano kati ya usingizi na unyogovu, lakini utafiti wa hivi karibuni umeonyesha kwamba muda wa usingizi na viwango vya unyogovu vina uhusiano. Utafiti huo ulichunguza mapacha 1,788, na kugundua jeni linalohusika na muda wa usingizi na dalili za kushuka moyo. Utafiti huo unaonyesha kwamba watu wanaolala usingizi mfupi kuliko kawaida, yaani, saa saba kwa usiku, wana hatari kubwa ya kuugua ugonjwa wa kushuka moyo. Kama unafikiri kwamba sayansi ni kulala wewe ni makosa. Kila siku uvumbuzi mpya kuhusu usingizi unafanywa na wakati baadhi ya inaweza kuwa na ushawishi mkubwa juu ya maisha yako, wengine inaweza kushikilia ahadi ya ajabu ya baadaye, hivyo vidole crossed kwamba watafiti hawa ni uwezo wa kugeuka uvumbuzi huu wa kisayansi katika matibabu ya kweli ya ulimwengu na uvumbuzi ili sisi wote wanaweza kufaidika kutoka kwao. Kuchukua nyumbani kutoka kwa yote ya hapo juu ni kwamba kupata kiasi sahihi cha usingizi (karibu masaa 7) kila usiku ni jambo bora zaidi unaweza kufanya kwa afya yako ya usingizi na afya kwa ujumla. """Katika ardhi na maji ambayo tunalala, tunatembea na kuishi, tunatambua Wamiliki wa jadi na Walinzi wa ardhi hizi." Tunaheshimu wazee wa zamani, wa sasa na wanaojitokeza, na tunatambua uhusiano wao na ardhi. Copyright © Ergoflex Australia, jina la biashara la EAU Pty Ltd. 7 2 Sabre Close, Anambra Business Park, Rutherford, NSW, 2320 ABN: 85 141 058 380