|
|
| Letter From the Editor-in-Chief: Is Worrying About Sleep Keeping Us Awake? |
| Happy weekend, Healthliners. If a small person with strong opinions about dinosaurs has already had you up since six, this one’s for you. |
Another week, another sleep study - but this one is built differently. Researchers using UK Biobank data tracked more than 95,000 people over a multi-year timeline and found that more REM sleep was linked to a lower risk of 83 diseases, including dementia, Parkinson’s, and MS. It’s peer-reviewed science of significant depth and scale, and for a self-confessed “bad sleeper,” it makes for slightly uncomfortable reading.
The problem is that plenty of us are already lying awake in the early hours, fretting about poor sleep (and, in my case, anticipating the arrival of the aforementioned small person at 6 am on the dot with burning questions about the natural world). Nearly 70% of Americans say anxiety costs them sleep, and for some, the tracker that follows them to slumberland is feeding the issue rather than fixing it. There’s even a name for the phenomenon: orthosomnia, where obsessing over your sleep score results in sleep deterioration and, in extreme cases, insomnia.
In this week’s column, I take a candid look at life as a “very busy person” with a very early alarm clock and explain why I’m choosing to take the useful data my sleep tracker provides while leaving the anxiety it can bring behind. It’s a reminder to be kind to yourself and to remember that neither your sleep nor your wider health journey is linear — and that is A-Ok.
You can read the piece in full here and, as ever, let me know what you think by emailing me here.
Wishing you sweet dreams, a long lie-in, and a very healthy week ahead.
Robin |
|
| Robin Hough |
| Editor-in-Chief |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Until next time, |
 |
Take care of yourself, and we'll
see you again soon! |
|
|
|
|
|
View in browser
Did a friend send you this email? Subscribe here.
To see all newsletters, click here.
Privacy | Update Preferences or Unsubscribe
We may feature your messages to our inbox within our content. Please do not provide any personal identifiable information. Replies may be edited for length and clarity. For more, see our Privacy Policy.
Our website services, content, and products are for informational purposes only. Healthline does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment and should not be used as a substitute for medical advice from a healthcare professional. Healthline encourages you to make any treatment decisions with your healthcare professional.
Every product we recommend has gone through either Healthline's or Optum Now's vetting processes. If you buy through links on this page, we may receive a small commission or other tangible benefit. Healthline has sole editorial control over this newsletter. Potential uses for the products listed here are not health claims made by the manufacturers. Healthline and Optum Now are owned by RVO Health.
We may feature your messages to our inbox within our content. Please do not provide any personal identifiable information. Replies may be edited for length and clarity. For more, see our Privacy Policy.
Our website services, content, and products are for informational purposes only. Healthline does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment and should not be used as a substitute for medical advice from a healthcare professional. Healthline encourages you to make any treatment decisions with your healthcare professional.
Every product we recommend has gone through either Healthline’s or Optum Now’s vetting processes. If you buy through links on this page, we may receive a small commission or other tangible benefit. Healthline has sole editorial control over this newsletter. Potential uses for the products listed here are not health claims made by the manufacturers. Healthline and Optum Now are owned by RVO Health.
© 2026 RVO Health
1101 Red Ventures Drive
Fort Mill, SC 29707 |
|
