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Weighted Blanket Increases Melatonin

posted by mrpg on Friday October 21 2022, @02:40AM   
from the to-sleep-perchance-to-dream dept.

hubie writes:

A new study from Uppsala University shows that using a weighted blanket at bedtime increases melatonin in young adults:

Previous research has shown that weighted blankets may ease insomnia in humans. However, the underlying mechanisms are not fully understood. Hence, researchers from Uppsala University in Sweden experimented with 26 young men and women to examine if the bedtime use of a weighted blanket increases the production of sleep-promoting and anti-stress hormones like melatonin and oxytocin. In addition, they investigated whether the bedtime use of a weighted blanket (12 percent of participants' body weight) reduced the activity of stress systems in the body. [...]

"Using a weighted blanket increased melatonin concentrations in saliva by about 30 percent. However, no differences in oxytocin, cortisol, and the activity of the sympathetic nervous system were observed between the weighted and light blanket conditions," says Elisa Meth, first author and Ph.D. student at the Department of Pharmaceutical Biosciences at Uppsala University.

Journal Reference:
Elisa M. S. Meth, Luiz Eduardo Mateus Brandão, Lieve T. van Egmond, et al., A weighted blanket increases pre-sleep salivary concentrations of melatonin in young, healthy adults [open], J Sleep Res, 2022. DOI: 10.1111/jsr.13743

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Original Submission

• 3...2....1.... 3...2....1.... (Score: 0, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 21 2022, @05:28AM (1 child)

  by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 21 2022, @05:28AM (#1277643)

  In a second study, melatonin has no effect on sleep. Therefore it must be the magic beans in the floating carpet.

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• Re:3...2....1.... (Score: 3, Informative) by Freeman on Friday October 21 2022, @01:43PM

  by Freeman (732) on Friday October 21 2022, @01:43PM (#1277714) Journal

  https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements-melatonin/art-20363071 [mayoclinic.org]

  Melatonin is a hormone in your body that plays a role in sleep. The production and release of melatonin in the brain is connected to time of day, increasing when it's dark and decreasing when it's light. Melatonin production declines with age.

  Melatonin is also available as a supplement, typically as an oral tablet or capsule. Most melatonin supplements are made in a lab.

  People commonly use melatonin for sleep disorders, such as insomnia and jet lag.

  --
  Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"

  Parent