Blogs By Pillar
Read the latest blog posts from lifestyle medicine experts at Stanford University covering health topics across our 7 pillars.
How Sleep Deprivation Affects Your Metabolic Health
By Nicole Molumphy Do you ever get those late-night cravings or feel like your hunger is never satiated? Research shows that consistent short sleep duration (less than 7 hours per night) can influence metabolic health, affect the function of appetite hormones, increase food cravings, and lead to a 38 percent increase in obesity in adults. Consistent sleep deprivation can lead to altered functioning of the appetite hormones ghrelin and leptin. Ghrelin increases our appetite and is released by cells in...
Sleep Wearables – Are They Worth it? A Stanford Sleep Doctor Weighs In
By Angel Cleare, BS From Oura Rings to Fitbits, wearable sleep-tracking devices are all the rage in today's technology-driven world. In 2020, almost 30 percent of US adults used wearable healthcare devices. But rather than running out to buy one, we must first ask ourselves, "Do these wearables live up to the hype?" We sat down with a Stanford sleep expert to find out. "Sleep wearables can be helpful tools to provide insights on your sleep trends over weeks to...
Don’t Hit Snooze! And Other Practical Tips for Optimal Sleep
By Sharon Brock, MEd, MS Millions of Americans share a similar experience every morning. The alarm goes off, but they've already been awake for hours in bed. They hit the snooze button to squeeze in a few more minutes of precious rest, not realizing they were making their sleep problems worse. "Hitting the snooze button is one of the worst things you can do because it prolongs morning grogginess and associates the bed with being awake," says Fiona Barwick, PhD,...
Sleep Expert Jamie Zeitzer, PhD, Seeks the Truth
By Sharon Brock, MEd, MS Like a Renaissance explorer, the insatiable curiosity of Jamie Zeitzer, PhD, drives him to explore big questions as a senior researcher and co-director of the Stanford Center for Sleep and Circadian Sciences. After 25 years of conducting sleep research, including groundbreaking studies on circadian rhythms and how light affects the brain, Dr. Zeitzer still enjoys navigating the uncertain waters of research and helping us all get a better night’s sleep. “What drives me in research...
Screen Time and Sleep—It’s Different for Adults
By Mary Grace Descourouez, MS, NBC-HWC Many of us have heard that looking at our phones or iPads at night can keep us awake due to light exposure, however, research shows this may be true for children, but there is not sufficient evidence to support this claim for adults. “Young children have a greater sensitivity to light because more light gets to the retina of a child than an adult,” says Jamie Zeitzer, PhD, Co-Director of the Stanford Center for...