+Numbers | April 27, 2012

30%

Percentage of American workers — that’s 40.6 million U.S. adults — who are getting 6 hours of sleep or less per night. The National Sleep Foundation recommends 7 to 9 hours a night. Most at risk of sleep-deprivation: night shift workers, especially in the transportation, warehousing and health care industries. Divorced, separated or widowed people [...]

+Sleep | December 21, 2011

Study: Sleep-Deprived Police Officers Risk Everyone’s Safety

By Anne Harding/Health.com
nap

Many police officers are putting themselves — and the public — at risk by failing to address their sleep problems and excessive fatigue, a new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association suggests.

+Sleep | October 25, 2011

Insomnia May Boost Heart Attack Risk

By Matt McMillen/Health.com
Getty Images

People who struggle with insomnia appear to be more prone to heart attacks than those who typically get a good night’s sleep, a large Norwegian study has found.

+Sleep | September 1, 2011

The High Cost of Bad Sleep: $63 Billion Per Year

By Meredith Melnick
Getty Images

Lack of sleep has been linked to health problems like high blood pressure and even early death, and now a new study tallies another price: insomnia costs the average American worker 11.3 days, or $2,280 in lost productivity each year. That adds up to $63.2 billion (and 252.7 workdays) for the whole country.

+Sleep | June 17, 2011

Tip for Insomniacs: Cool Your Head to Fall Asleep

By Alice Park
PhotoAlto/Frederic Cirou

Can’t sleep? If darkening the room doesn’t help, you might try a cooling cap.

+Depression | May 23, 2011

Could a Body-Clock Drug Help Ease Depression?

By Amie Ninh
Stockbyte via Getty Images

Sad mood and sleep problems often go together — sleep disturbances like insomnia or, conversely, sleeping too much are common symptoms or warning signs of depression. Now, some doctors say that drugs that help regulate sleep may also help improve people’s moods.

+Sleep | January 27, 2011

Can’t Sleep? It May Help to Get Out of Bed

By Meredith Melnick
Matt Henry Gunther via Getty Images

Those who have suffered from insomnia know the sinking feeling of watching the clock tick into the wee hours. Now a new study in the Archives of Internal Medicine suggests that lying in bed awake may actually contribute to the problem of sleeplessness.

+Sleep | November 11, 2010

Why Americans Are Among the Most Sleepless People in the World

By Meredith Melnick
PM Images/Getty Images

A new survey finds that Americans are among the world’s leaders in sleep deprivation, along with the French and Taiwanese.

+Sleep | September 2, 2010

Lack of Sleep Linked With Depression, Weight Gain and Even Death

By Meredith Melnick
Image Source/Getty

A collection of studies published Wednesday in the journal Sleep tackled some important questions: What are the health effects of not getting enough sleep? How does sleep deprivation affect teens? Does insomnia have long-term consequences?