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posted by Fnord666 on Tuesday July 18 2017, @11:21AM   Printer-friendly
from the zzzzzz dept.

Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story:

Having a good reason to get out of bed in the morning means you are more likely to sleep better at night with less sleep apnea and restless leg syndrome, reports a new Northwestern Medicine and Rush University Medical Center study based on older adults.

This is the first study to show having a purpose in life specifically results in fewer sleep disturbances and improved sleep quality and over a long period of time. Previous research showed having a purpose in life generally improves overall sleep when measured at a single point in time.

Although the participants in the study were older, researchers said the findings are likely applicable to the broader public.

"Helping people cultivate a purpose in life could be an effective drug-free strategy to improve sleep quality, particularly for a population that is facing more insomnia," said senior author Jason Ong, an associate professor of neurology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. "Purpose in life is something that can be cultivated and enhanced through mindfulness therapies."

The paper will be published in the journal Sleep Science and Practice.

-- submitted from IRC

Journal Reference: Arlener D. Turner, Christine E. Smith, Jason C. Ong. Is purpose in life associated with less sleep disturbance in older adults? Sleep Science and Practice, 2017; 1 (1) DOI: 10.1186/s41606-017-0015-6


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  • (Score: 2) by AthanasiusKircher on Tuesday July 18 2017, @05:55PM (3 children)

    by AthanasiusKircher (5291) on Tuesday July 18 2017, @05:55PM (#541064) Journal

    Just because state of mind is important doesn't mean that legitimate physical fatigue can't have an influence too. Sure, if you don't feel your exercise was productive, you might not sleep as well. But I'd bet a lot of money that if you do farmhand kind of manual labor for 10-12 hours in a day, you're going to sleep more soundly and deeply at least for much of the night.

    Whether 30 or 60 minutes of "exercise" is significant enough to induce more heavy sleep is probably a more open question.

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  • (Score: 2) by jcross on Tuesday July 18 2017, @08:29PM (2 children)

    by jcross (4009) on Tuesday July 18 2017, @08:29PM (#541146)

    It doesn't necessarily disprove the point, though, since 10-12 hours of farmhand kind of manual labor is probably going to add up to something purposeful, and then we can't separate the accomplishment from the labor itself. Just as a thought experiment, imagine being forced to do some purposefully Sisyphean task all day at Gitmo. Seems plausible to me you might not sleep very well despite the exhaustion.

    • (Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 18 2017, @09:34PM (1 child)

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 18 2017, @09:34PM (#541175)

      I edit Soylent posts for 10-12 hours daily and sleep like a freaking leopard.

      • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 19 2017, @02:57PM

        by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 19 2017, @02:57PM (#541448)

        I mod them in the off hours hanging upside down. I sleep like a koala.