Author Interviews, BMJ, Heart Disease, Sleep Disorders / 10.09.2019

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr Nadine Häusler Department of Medicine, Internal Medicine University Hospital of Lausanne Lausanne, Switzerland MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Response: There are controversial results regarding the effect of napping on cardiovascular disease (CVD) exist i.e. some studies report adverse effects of napping whereas other find beneficial effects of napping on CVD. Most studies compare nappers to non-nappers or study nap duration but neglect to take the frequency of napping into account. Moreover, studies measure naps in a different way, study different populations and include different confounders, which makes it hard to compare the results. Thus, we aimed to study the association between CVD and napping as a more holistic behavior i.e. not just the duration but also the frequency of napping. (more…)
Author Interviews, Memory, Pediatrics, Sleep Disorders / 22.08.2018

MedicalResearch.com Interview with: Dr. Rebecca Spencer PhD Associate Professor Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences University of Massachusetts MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings? Response: We know that in young adults, sleep contributes to emotion processing. We wondered if naps work similarly for preschool children.  To look at this, we had children learn an emotional memory task and then either take a nap or stay awake.  We then tested their memory after that interval and again the next day. We found that when children napped, they had better memory for those items the next day than if they did not nap.  That the naps seem to support memory (even if in a delayed fashion) seems consistent with the observation of parents and preschool teachers that children are often emotionally dysregulated if they do not nap. (more…)