Those persons who are labeled a "night owl" report more pathological symptoms related to insomnia, despite many having the opportunity to compensate for their nocturnal sleeplessness by extending their time in bed and being able to gain more total sleep time, according to a study published in the April 15th issue of the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine (JCSM).
The study, authored by Jason C. Ong, PhD, and colleagues at Stanford University, consisted of 312 patients, who were categorized as morning, intermediate and evening chronotypes based upon scores on the Morningness-Eveningness Composite Scale. Group comparisons were made on self-report measures of nocturnal sleep, sleep period variability and waking correlates and consequences of insomnia.
Compared to the morning and intermediate types, people with insomnia who prefer evening activities (i.e., "night owls") reported the most sleep/wake irregularities and waking distress, even after adjusting for severity of sleep disturbance.
"Our findings indicate that further research should investigate the relationship between circadian rhythms and insomnia, especially with the severity of the 'night owl' group," said Ong. "These factors may serve to perpetuate the insomnia disorder, and might be particularly important to consider when treating this subgroup of insomniacs."
WASHINGTON - Abstinence-only education programs meant to teach children to avoid sex until marriage failed to control their sexual behavior, according to a government report.
Experience seeing a person's face makes it easier to hear them
Experience hearing a person's voice allows us to more easily hear what they are saying. Now research by UC Riverside psychology Professor Lawrence D. Rosenblum and graduate students Rachel M. Miller and Kauyumari Sanchez has shown that experience seeing a person's face also makes it easier to hear them.
Rosenblum's paper, "Lip-Read Me Now, Hear Me Better Later: Crossmodal Transfer of Talker Familiarity Effects," will appear in the May issue of the journal Psychological Science, published by the Association for Psychological Science.
Sixty college undergraduates were asked to lip-read sentences from a silent videotape of a talker's face. These subjects all had normal hearing and vision and had no formal lip reading experience.
A new study in Psychophysiology confirms a surprising fact - men who have undergone chemical castration for conditions such as prostate cancer experience hot flashes similar to those experienced by menopausal women. Using a technique called sternal skin conductance, doctors were able to positively identify hot flashes in males, a positive step toward providing therapy for those patients in need.
"Most people are unaware that men can have hot flashes," says study author Dr. Laura Hanisch. "Even the patients themselves are often unaware that they are having them." Having a test that objectively measures when hot flashes are occurring can help both doctors and patients identify the episodes, and can assist researchers in finding their root cause.
Scientists say they have successfully made immature sperm cells from human bone marrow samples.
If these can be grown into fully developed sperm, which the researchers hope to do within five years, they may be useful in fertility treatments.
But experts have warned the findings from the German study should be interpreted with caution at this very early stage.
And proposed new laws would ban their use in fertility treatments in the UK.
Richard Johnson
Market DayFri, 13 Apr 2007 12:23 UTC
Critics have asserted that the Bush Administration has used politicalpressure and a brilliant public relations strategy to define their ownbrand of science during George Bush, Jr.'s term as U.S. president.
According to findings released by two public interest groups, scientistsand staff members working for the Food and Drug Administration saypolitical and commercial pressures are compromising their mission toprovide truthful and accurate public health and safety information.
The Union of Concerned Scientists and Public Employees for EnvironmentalResponsibility said their survey of 997 FDA staff members suggests the"culture of science is under attack and struggling at the FDA."
SEATTLE - Druggists who believe "morning-after" birth control pills are tantamount to abortion can't stand in the way of a patient's right to the drugs, state regulators have decided.
Much of the research surrounding childhood asthma has sought new approaches to managing the disease. However, little was done to address other conditions that often appear along with asthma including depression and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), which can negatively affect a child's ability to cope. Research completed at the University of Virginia Children's Hospital asserts that until these extra conditions or "co-morbidities" are addressed, asthma education programs will not be able to help young patients to the fullest. The results will be published in the April 12 issue of The Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics.
"We can definitively state that families with asthmatic children not only report higher incidences of ADHD, but also of depression, anxiety and learning disabilities," said Dr. James Blackman, developmental pediatrician at the Kluge Children's Rehabilitation Center at UVa Children's Hospital and lead study author. "If we can manage these co-morbidities, we can better help children with asthma and their families to manage the disease in the healthiest way possible."
ATLANTA - The sexually transmitted disease gonorrhea is now among the "superbugs" resistant to common antibiotics, leading U.S. health officials to recommend wider use of a different class of drugs to avert a public health crisis.
School bullying affects majority of elementary students
Nine out of 10 elementary students have been bullied by their peers, according to a simple questionnaire developed by researchers at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital and the Stanford University School of Medicine. What's more, nearly six in 10 children surveyed in the preliminary study reported participating in some type of bullying themselves in the past year.
Comment: As in childhood, it is in adulthood. Bullies grow up and manage to get into government with dire consequences for the world population. The study of grown-up 'bullies' in power is better known as
Political Ponerology.
Comment: As in childhood, it is in adulthood. Bullies grow up and manage to get into government with dire consequences for the world population. The study of grown-up 'bullies' in power is better known as Political Ponerology.