Irregular sleep may increase risk of cardiovascular events

The body’s clock keeps metabolism, blood pressure and heart rate running on schedule. But when an irregular sleep pattern disrupts this delicate ticking, what happens? A new study led by investigators from Brigham and Women’s Hospital measured participants’ sleep duration and timing, finding that over a five-year period, individuals who had the most irregular sleep experienced a two-fold increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease compared to those with the most regular sleep patterns. The team’s findings are published in The Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
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Coping strategies, a matter of neurons

In response to stressors, individuals exhibit different coping styles, each characterized by a set of behavioural, physiological, and psychological responses. The active behavioural style refers to efforts to blunt the impact of stressors and is related to resilience to stress, whereas the passive behavioural style refers to efforts to avoid confronting stressors and is associated with vulnerability to psychopathology. This is a well-known scientific question, shortly called the “fight or flight.” However, the biological basis of the brain has not been fully understood.
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Child access prevention laws spare gun deaths in children

U.S. states with laws regulating the storage of firearms in households with minors had a 13 percent reduction in firearm fatalities in children under 15 compared to states with no such regulations, finds a study from Boston Children’s Hospital. States with the most restrictive laws had the greatest reduction: 59 percent reduction as compared to states with no laws. Results of this analysis, spanning 26 years, were published in a paper on March 2, 2020 in JAMA Pediatrics.
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Memory concerns? Blood test may put mind at ease or pave way to promising treatments

A blood test that may eventually be done in a doctor’s office can swiftly reveal if a patient with memory issues has Alzheimer’s disease or mild cognitive impairment and can also distinguish both conditions from frontotemporal dementia. If approved, the blood test could lead to a jump in the number of Alzheimer’s patients enrolling in clinical trials and be used to monitor response to those investigational treatments.
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