Sleep for science

Almost all universities that teach medicine have a ‘sleep for science’ option for students and locals to participate in research and earn a little pocket money. In Sydney there is one at the University of Sydney medical faculty.

A study of sleep - technical name: polysomnography - involves you being monitored overnight in a controlled room. The scientists are usually involved in either disrupting the sleep of people who sleep just fine, or in helping people who struggle to sleep get more shuteye. Medical doctors then use those learnings to help those who almost never sleep.

What we know from this type of research is that sleep deprivation is hard to solve and there seem to be few solutions that can be easily applied to a wide group of people.

We also know that most prescription medicines should only be used for a very short periods of time. After a few days their use causes much more harm than good.

Patients taking heavy sleep medicines mostly complain of sleeping but still not feeling rested. And about half of all prescription medicines for sleep leave users feeling sleepy all day and struggling to concentrate.

Sleep therapists who tend to get most non-chronic patients tend to avoid prescription medicines and seek to persuade their clients to stay as cool as they feel comfortable in bed, wear earplugs, and try combinations of natural herbal concentrates to start.

SLEEPZZZ is a well-researched combination of herbal medicines that don’t require a prescription, can be used longer term, and, above all, are soft on the neurology of the brain.

We don’t insist on you sleeping naked but it’s probably a good idea.