UNI NOVA – Research Magazine of the University of Basel
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Dossier
Each person is their own clock
Text: Oliver Klaffke / Human beings have their own sleep-wake cycles, and these rhythms can be disturbed by light emitted from smartphones and tablets. At the Psychiatric Hospital of the University of Basel (UPK), Christian Cajochen’s team is examining these rhythms in human beings.
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Dossier
Sleepless in the sleep laboratory
Text: Yannik Sprecher / My night was not as unpleasant as I had anticipated – wearing electrodes on my head was certainly unusual, but less awkward than expected. Also, my bed was comfortable and the carers were kind. Still, I would not want to spend my nights in the sleep lab for weeks on end. A first-hand account.
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Dossier
Exercise and being in love promote a good night’s sleep
Text: Martin Hicklin / What can be done when sleep is badly disturbed, and what promotes good sleep? Research groups at the Psychiatric Clinics of the University of Basel (UPK) have been addressing such questions for some time now. Exercise is good – but so is being in love.
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Dossier
Dealing with stress
Text: Martin Hicklin / Depression, stress, and burnout are often accompanied by poor sleep. Analysis of brain patterns and hormonal tests offer a path to improved treatments.
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Dossier
Premature babies have trouble sleeping – a problem that can continue later in life
Text: Christoph Dieffenbacher / Psychologists at the University of Basel are currently conducting a longitudinal study to investigate whether the sleep of people born prematurely differs in later life from that of their peers.
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Dossier
Later start to the school day, more alert children
Text: Christoph Dieffenbacher / Children and adolescents have long known it: If school starts later in the morning, they feel more rested and fitter. Even a small shift in school hours makes a difference, as psychologists at the University of Basel have discovered. Their findings have had consequences.
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Dossier
Self-confident adolescents sleep better
Text: Christoph Dieffenbacher / About one-fifth of adolescents say that they sleep badly. A psychologist from the University of Basel has been investigating the reasons for this for some years and is looking for solutions. He also has a few tips for parents.
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Dossier
Nightly respiratory arrest
Text: Christoph Dieffenbacher / Heavy snoring accompanied by interruptions in breathing can lead to serious health problems. In Basel, pulmonologists are investigating the mechanisms that put constant stress on snorers suffering from sleep apnea. Possible therapeutic approaches are also being identified.
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Dossier
The 25-hour man
Text: Oliver Klaffke / Each person’s wake-sleep rhythm is calibrated at 24 hours. In Basel, scientists are studying a man for whom the mechanism does not work. This is providing them with new insights into human chronobiology.