Sleep Unplugged with Dr. Chris Winter

Over the past few years, the topic of sleep has permeated the media landscape like few other topics in science and medicine. This has led to not only a fascination withing the public about the topic, but also a wild west-like race to financially capitalize on sleep products. But which products are better than others? In this episode, we will:discuss the ways in which the media "rank" various sleep productsdive into the ways in which these ratings are determinedcontrast this with the relatively small amount of credible research available for these determinationsunderstand how these awards and certifications are often bought or acquired through means other than a product's merit in the fieldstress that the only way to know if a product is going to work well for you is to try itProduced by: Maeve WinterMore Twitter: @drchriswinter IG: @drchriwinter Threads: @drchriswinter Bluesky: @drchriswinter The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child Thanks for listening and sleep well!

On September 16th, 2024, Apple announced their new sleep apnea detection feature for their Apple Watch device had received FDA approval for the detection of mild to moderate sleep apnea. While this is an exciting development in the consumer medical field. In this episode, there are some concerns about this technology. In this episode we will:Touch upon the numbers when it comes to sleep apneaUnderstand why there is a market for sleep apnea detectionDescribe the technology Apple uses to detect sleep apneaReview the concept of true positive, true negative, false positive, an false negative results and how they relate to the concepts of sensitivity and specificity.Compare the sensitivity of the Apple Watch to chance, home sleep testing, etc.Consider the ideal sleep apnea screening characteristicsProduced by: Maeve WinterMore Twitter: @drchriswinter IG: @drchriwinter Threads: @drchriswinter Bluesky: @drchriswinter The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child Thanks for listening and sleep well!

As summer comes to an end, it's a good time to examine how seasonal change tends to affect our sleep. In this episode we will:Refresh our memories about circadian factors related to sleepLook at seasonal trends in sleep times, bed times and wake timesEvaluate factors such as light, temperature, and exercise as well as other surprising sleep variables that change with the seasonExamine various sleep stages and how seasons affect their quality and quantityDive into new research suggesting that in addition to seasons affecting sleep characteristics, our sleep characteristics may be intrinsically changing to prepare us for various seasonsProduced by: Maeve WinterMore Twitter: @drchriswinter IG: @drchriwinter Threads: @drchriswinter Bluesky: @drchriswinter The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child Thanks for listening and sleep well!

For the first installment of the Sleep Unplugged Book Club, we will examine Andrew Spector's new book Navigating Life with Restless Legs Syndrome. This also marks a revisiting of the topic we covered in episode #13 (Restless Legs Syndrome: You Gotta Move). In this episode we will:Introduce Dr. Andrew Spector, a Duke University professor of neurology and restless legs expertUpdate and supplement information from episode #13 of this podcast about restless legs syndrome (RLS)Explore the role of iron in RLS and how to use ferritin and transferrin levels to guide potential therapiesTouch upon the idea that despite different causes of RLS, determining the precise reason why you have RLS may not be particularly essential for choosing therapiesList new treatment options that are not prescription medicationsReexamine difficulties and downsides to dopamine agonist therapiesCautiously look at the use of benzodiazepines and opioids in perhaps a new lightTouch upon other prescription medications that might be useful in the disorderMention the relationship between insomnia and RLSProduced by: Maeve WinterMore Twitter: @drchriswinter IG: @drchriwinter Threads: @drchriswinter Bluesky: @drchriswinter The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child Thanks for listening and sleep well!

There is no topic in sleep more likely to incite a riot between sleep experts than the concept of a sleep debt. Does it really exist? Can a sleep debt ever be repaid? If so, how long? In this episode, we will:Define sleep debtExamine a new population study on the effects of sleep debt on cardiovascular riskAttempt to consolidate the available research into guidelines for dealing effectively with sleep debtDifferentiate between sleep debt responses in insomnia sufferers and sleep deprived individualsTouch on how accurately understanding personal sleep need directly impacts sleep debtProduced by: Maeve WinterMore Twitter: @drchriswinter IG: @drchriwinter Threads: @drchriswinter Bluesky: @drchriswinter The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child Thanks for listening and sleep well!

Dive into the fascinating link between inflammation and sleep. Discover how cytokines affect both the inflammatory response and sleep regulation. Explore how sleep deprivation triggers a 'cytokine storm' that can be life-threatening. Uncover the connection between inflammation and chronic diseases, including dementia. Additionally, take a musical detour with Bruce Springsteen's impactful legacy, examining his rise and the evolution of his live performances.

Somewhere between normal nocturnal breathing and sleep apnea exists a strange entity. This condition, often debated in terms of its mere existence is upper airway resistance syndrome, and knowing about it can be the difference between solving your sleep-related breathing woes and continuing your struggles. In this episode we will:define upper airway resistance syndrome (UARS)review the concept and pathophysiology of upper airway resistancecontrast how this disorder is defined in comparison to sleep apnealearn the difference between an AHI (apnea-hypopnea index) and an RDI (respiratory disturbance index)understand how different sleep studies (in-lab studies, home sleep studies/home sleep tests) might differ in their ability to diagnose the disorderlist the various treatments that can be applied to the diagnosisProduced by: Maeve WinterMore Twitter: @drchriswinter IG: @drchriwinter Threads: @drchriswinter Bluesky: @drchriswinter The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child Thanks for listening and sleep well!

Sleep walking is probably the most recognized and discussed parasomnia, but it can also create significant confusion and danger for those affected. In this episode, we will:Define sleepwalking Differentiate somnambulism and noctambulismEvaluate how age and genetics affects the conditionCharacterize the parasomniaList the causes of sleep walkingDiscuss disorders associated with the disorderTouch upon ways to assess sleepwalkingEmphasize treatments and how to make environments safe for sleepwalkersProduced by: Maeve WinterMore Twitter: @drchriswinter IG: @drchriwinter Threads: @drchriswinter Bluesky: @drchriswinter The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child Thanks for listening and sleep well!

We often talk about the amount of sleep individuals need creates confusion for insomnia patients. In this episode we dive deeper into this concept with a way in which to think about sleep need. In this episode we will:Revisit sleep need Understand why 8 hours is not right more many individualsTouch on the complicated nature of determining how much sleep one needs to sleepDefine the "Good Night Rebound Bias"Learn how perception impacts sleepDescribe how sleep journals can be made into more powerful tools for sleep needLearn how to calculate a Internight Sleep Variability ScoreProduced by: Maeve WinterMore Twitter: @drchriswinter IG: @drchriwinter Threads: @drchriswinter Bluesky: @drchriswinter The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child Thanks for listening and sleep well!

Sleep apnea is a very common medical problem that affects a large portion of the population. The treatment options leave much to be desired including what is by far and away the most common treatment: the CPAP device. This reality has led to the quest to find a medical treatment for sleep apnea, and one investigational drug AD109, has received some early attention. In this episode we will:Discuss the history of medications being tested as potential treatments for sleep apneaReview how sleep apnea is classified in terms of its severityList the current therapies for sleep apneaDescribe the two components of AD109, and the mechanism of action of these drugsEvaluate the design and results of a recent study of AD109 in mild sleep apneaPut in perspective what these result mean in real world situationsProduced by: Maeve WinterMore Twitter: @drchriswinter IG: @drchriwinter Threads: @drchriswinter Bluesky: @drchriswinter The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child Thanks for listening and sleep well!