THIS WEEK'S SLEEP NEWS, Aug 7 - 13

 SPECIAL  || BACK TO SCHOOL LINKS
SleepyHeadCENTRAL proudly supports the Start School Later movement, which has shown strong evidence that later school start times for our kids results in smarter, healthier, more well-adjusted kids. 

• ATLANTA JOURNAL CONSTITUTION || Why do middle and high schools resist starting later so teens aren’t exhausted?
• BALTIMORE SUN || Balto. Co. going the wrong direction on school start times: By starting school earlier, Baltimore County is putting efficiency ahead of student health and achievement
• FOX 6 NEWS || Attention parents: 10 tips for child wellness as the new school year starts
• HARKER HEIGHTS HERALD || Tips for child wellness as the new school year starts
• INDIANA UNIVERSITY HEALTH || Sleep Schedules and Going Back to School
• KELOLAND TV || The Importance Of Sleep For Students
• KTAR NEWS || Teens not sleeping enough — some blame school start time, others say tech
• NEUROLOGY ADVISOR || Call for Later School Start Times to Improve Adolescent Sleep Habits
• NORTHJERSEY.com || New law directs New Jersey to study later school start times as benefit to students
• SLEEP BETTER, LIVE BETTER BLOG || Sleepy Students Perform Worse in School
• STATESBORO HERALD ||  6 ways to set healthy sleep habits in kids
• WASHINGTON POST || No more sleeping in: How to prepare kids for the cruel reality of school schedules

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 TOP TEN  || Sleep news picks this week -- newest to oldest

1. AUG 13 || GAWKER
Justice Dept.: Human Beings Need Sleep, So Stop Fining Them for Sleeping Outside
Culture

2. AUG 13 || PSYCH CENTRAL
Exercise Reduces Depression-Related Sleep Problems
Lifestyle & Hygiene

3. AUG 12 || MD MAGAZINE
Q&A With Paul Doghramji: Shift Work Disorder and the Future of Sleep Medicine
Public Health & Safety

4. AUG 11 || NATIONAL TRAFFIC SAFETY BOARD
Fatigue and Excessive Speed Caused Multi-Vehicle Accident in New Jersey (referring to injured comedian Tracy Morgan and comedian Jimmy Mack, who perished in the accident)
Celebrities

5. AUG 11 || NEW SCIENTIST
Darting eyes in REM sleep are seeing objects in your dreams
The Science of Sleep

6. AUG 11 || WCTV-TV [FL]
Grieving Mom Celebrates Daughter's Birthday by Launching SIDS Campaign 

Pediatrics

7. AUG 10 || NEWSER
Air Traffic Controllers Suffer Scary Sleep Deprivation: The AP has results of a study faulting grueling schedules 
  -- and --
AUG 11 || SLEEP REVIEW
FAA Responds to NASA Controller Fatigue Study Findings 
Public Health & Safety

8. AUG 10 || OFFICE OF NAVAL RESEARCH
Worn-out warriors? ONR looks at importance of sleep to warfighters
Military

9. AUG 7 || FORBES
Are Line Haul Drivers Getting Enough Sleep?
Public Health & Safety

10. AUG 7 || SLEEP REVIEW
Don’t Miss Out on Shut-eye, Warns Man Who Was Most Sleep-deprived in UK
Video

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 WORLD  || International sleep news

AUG 8 || IRISH EXAMINER [IRELAND]
Hold back the years by sinking into sleep

AUG 9 || DAILY MAIL [UK]
Get more sleep, the middle-aged are told: New government campaign will target over-40s who are risking early death by getting less than six hours a night

AUG 9 || IRISH EXAMINER [IRELAND]
This woman has banned herself from laughing because it leaves her temporarily paralysed

AUG 9 || THE STAR ONLINE [MALAYSIA]
Teens trade sleep for success

AUG 10 || BURTON MAIL [UK]
A good night's sleep not a desirable – an essential

AUG 10 || HERALD SCOTLAND [SCOTLAND]
Colette Douglas Home: To sleep, perchance to become healthier of mind and body. [Editorial]

AUG 12 || CAYMAN REPORTER [CAYMAN ISLANDS]
Health City opens Cayman’s first sleep lab

AUG 12 || ZEE NEWS [INDIA]
Parliament deadlock: Rahul Gandhi caught napping during LS debate?

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 NATIONAL  || Sleep news across the U.S.

AUG 10 || WAKE UP NARCOLEPSY [MA]
Announcing ticket sales for the Third Annual Boston Comedy Night! All proceeds from this event will benefit Wake Up Narcolepsy, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization working to raise narcolepsy awareness and fund medical research to speed diagnosis, improve treatment, and develop a cure for this debilitating sleep disorder

AUG 11 || WRCB-TV [TN]
Video captures man stealing weighted therapy blanket 

AUG 12 || KENTUCKY.com [KY]
Sleep deprived truckers, exit now 

AUG 12 || WTOP [DC]
Specialist sheds light on struggle of insomnia 

AUG 13 || CLEVELAND JEWISH NEWS [OH]

Bedwetting something to lose sleep over 

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 PUBLIC HEALTH & SAFETY  || Community health: epidemiology, transportation, industry, education

AUG 7 || DAILY BREW
 Death by sleepwalking a rare but real possibility, says expert

AUG 10 || THE ROTHENBERG LAW FIRM
 Liability for Highway Trucking Accidents- Who Is To Blame?

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 BUSINESS & WORKPLACE  || Workplace safety, corporate news, the business of sleep

AUG 10 || CHEAT SHEET
Why People Who Sleep Better Earn More Money

AUG 12 || WICHITA EAGLE
Small Business Spotlight: Sleeptopia filling a niche in sleep apnea testing

AUG 13 || PAYSCALE
11 Ways Sleep Deprivation Is Ruining Your Career (and What to Do About It)

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 THE SCIENCE OF SLEEP  || Scientific research and basic sleep health resources

AUG 8 || KMA LAND 
Seasonal Affective Disorder: Summertime Blues

AUG 10 || HEALIO PULMONARY
Respiratory resistance increases in patients with obesity, OSA

AUG 10 || HEALIO RHEUMATOLOGY
Anxiety, depression, sleep disorders common in patients with rheumatic diseases

AUG 11 || THE INSOMNIA BLOG
Digging into memory—and its relationship to sleep

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 TECHNOLOGY  || Devices and tools for diagnosing and treating sleep health issues

AUG 10 || MD
Sleep Apnea Device Could Slow Diabetes Progression

AUG 10 || METRO
Say goodbye to jet lag with a new mask that rearranges your body clock

AUG 13 || GLOBE & MAIL
High-tech solutions to combat growing problem of drowsy driving

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 DRUGS & THERAPIES  || Pharmacology, therapeutics, alternative medicine

AUG 10 || STUFF.co.nz
Six yoga poses to help you sleep better
Alternative Therapies

AUG 10 || VAN WINKLE'S
Insomnia, Suicide and the Redemptive Power of Ketamine
Drugs

AUG 11 || REUTERS
Hetlioz pill may ease sleep disorder for some blind people
Drugs

AUG 13 || XTRI.com
Can the Sleep Cocktail help you unleash a new PR?
Alternative Therapies

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 CULTURE & MEDIA  || Cultural and social expressions and discussions about sleep

AUG 7 || DALLAS MORNING NEWS 
Megan Cartwright: Why it’s time to ease up on bed-wetting
Culture

AUG 10 || ENSTARS 
'Dancing With the Stars' 2015 Cast: Witney Carson Reveals Why She Has 'Insomnia' While Competing In Season
Celebrities

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 LIFESTYLE & HYGIENE  || Helps for patients and clues for sleep self-improvement

AUG 9 || MARIN INDEPENDENT JOURNAL
Dr Bill Elliott: Put down your iPad and go to sleep — really

AUG 10 || GAZETTE REVIEW
Regular Bedtime Routine is Beneficial for Health

AUG 11 || GAZETTE REVIEW
Studies Show Napping Benefits Mental Health

AUG 12 || MIMI

Catching Up On Sleep Isn't as Easy as You Think: Those recommended seven hours a night are no joke.

AUG 13 || LIVE TRADING NEWS
Nature’s Way To Get A Good Night’s Sleep

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 FAMILY  || Sleep health through the lifespan: pediatrics, womens health, family health, eldercare

AUG 7 || INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL REVIEW 
She Was In So Much Pain From Pregnancy She Couldn’t Sleep. That’s When the Doctor Pulls Out Tape
Women

AUG 10 || GUELPH MERCURY
Adequate sleep crucial for the development of toddlers
Pediatrics

AUG 10 || QUARTZ
Study: Children who watch TV at night are more prone to nightmares and sleep talking
Pediatrics

AUG 11 || SLEEP REVIEW
Before Surgery, Help Identifying Sleep-disordered Breathing in Kids
Pediatrics

AUG 13 || DURHAMREGION.com
How safe are baby's sleep spaces?
Pediatrics

AUG 13 || INDEPENDENT
Why insomnia hits middle-age and what we can do to prevent it
Middle Age

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 MULTIMEDIA  || Sleep health education and issues captured in film, photography, graphics, podcasts and audio

AUG 11 || CTV NEWS ATLANTIC
Lack of sleep may exacerbate chronic illnesses
Video

AUG 13 || WJHG
Sleep Medical Center Breaks Down the Science of Sleep
Video

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 FIRST PERSON  || Individual accounts of living with sleep disorders

AUG 13 || WARWICK BEACON
Letters: Productive Insomnia
Lifestyle & Hygiene

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 DREAM LIFE  || The art and science of dreaming

AUG 10 || ABC
Am I myself when I sleep? A philosophical look at dreams

AUG 13 || MEDICAL XPRESS
Forget Freud, research on dream imagery may help us understand consciousness

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Have a sleep-related news tip? Share it here!

Expert Testimony || Sleep Deprivation

Mark Rosekind,
National Traffic Safety Board,
 under President Obama

"Not getting enough sleep impairs our work performance, increases the risk for injuries and makes it more difficult to get along with others. Without sufficient sleep it is more difficult to concentrate, make careful decisions and follow instructions, we are more likely to make mistakes or errors, and are more prone to being impatient and lethargic. Our attention, memory and reaction time are all affected. But while we may recognize these symptoms, we do not always associate them as being symptoms of sleep loss."--Mark Rosekind, National Traffic Safety Board

Sleep and Society || Tracy Morgan Takes on Wal-Mart

Actor-Comedian Tracy Morgan

It appears that Wal-Mart is aiming to settle out of court with regard to the case of Tracy Morgan v. Wal-Mart Stores Inc., in which actor-comedian Tracy Morgan was badly injured in a multi-vehicle pileup in New Jersey last June. The collision took the life of his friend and fellow comedian, James (Jimmy Mack) McNair; two other passengers were also injured.

Wal-Mart was initially sued by Morgan in July for negligence based on reports that its tractor trailer driver Kevin Roper was allegedly awake for more than 24 hours at the time of the crash, which led to allegedly driving drowsy and the likelihood he fell asleep at the wheel.

Early reports from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) confirmed Roper was both speeding and running up against his drive time limit, a voluntary regulation in the commercial trucking industry meant to prevent drowsy driving in long-haul truckers.

Wal-Mart previously denied responsibility for the wreck and, in documents filed in New Jersey Federal Court this week, blamed Morgan's injuries on his failure to "exercise ordinary care in making use of available seat belts" and acting "unreasonably and in disregard of the plaintiffs' own best interests." Wal-Mart also expressed the possibility that Morgan's injuries "may have been caused by third parties over whom Wal-Mart had no control."

Representatives for Wal-Mart said that shifting some of the blame for the injuries onto Morgan and his companions would free the box store chain to reduce or eliminate some damages in the case as part of the settlement process.

Regardless, Morgan expressed outrage at the implications of the Wal-Mart statement this week. "I can't believe Wal-Mart is blaming me for an accident that they caused," he said in a statement.

However, one day after Wal-Mart condemned Morgan for not wearing a seat belt, they released a more conciliatory statement, saying they were "committed to working to resolve all of the remaining issues as a result of the accident... While we were required to respond to the lawsuit, we have also taken steps to encourage settlement discussions. Our thoughts continue to go out to everyone involved, and we remain committed to doing what's right."

Meanwhile, Morgan's attorney reported Tuesday that the actor-comedian has also suffered traumatic brain injury which has impaired both his speech and cognitive function. Morgan is also still unable to walk and relies on a wheelchair to ambulate. His attorney said it's unclear whether Morgan will be able to return to acting or stand-up comedy.

Wal-Mart truck driver, Kevin Roper, who initially pleaded not guilty to charges of vehicular homicide and assault by automobile, remains free on bail but was suspended by the corporation pending the outcome of the investigation.

This case shines a bright spotlight on federal regulations currently aimed at reducing fatigue in commercial truck drivers. Voluntary compliance demands that 11 hours of driving per day be matched with 14 hours of on-duty time total, with weekly limits on all driving hours also held to account. These rules were tightened by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) last year, but they are currently being scrutinized by the Senate, which is considering a reversal of some compliance rules for truck drivers.

Morgan's case also brings into stark review other similar tragedies: one in May 2013, in which a woman lost three of her nine children in a tractor trailer crash on a Georgia highway; the other just last week in Oklahoma, when four members of a Texas community college women's softball team were killed when a tractor trailer hit their bus.

A quick Google search shows that these kinds of accidents are far more prevalent than presumed. Nearly 4,000 people are killed annually in accidents involving tractor trailer trucks and semi trucks, sometimes due to poor driving by all parties, but nearly half, by some reports, occurring due to the fatigue induced by economic pressures on commercial drivers to work through sleeping periods in order to meet delivery times.

Currently, New Jersey is the only state to view drowsy driving as a criminal behavior; in the language of that state's law, a drowsy driver is defined as "a driver that has been without sleep for 24 hours." They are "considered to be driving recklessly, in the same class as an intoxicated driver. (New Jersey Statues §2C:11-5)."

This blog post compiled from reports by Bloomberg News, CNN.com, The New York Daily News and People Magazine.