Sleep, Health and Society©
Introduction to our Sleep, Health & Society© Research Programme
Sleep research in one minute!
View media and events
People with high blood pressure who take their medication
in time with their body clock could reduce the risk of a heart attack.
A collaboration between several institutions (University of Dundee [UK], German Research Center for Environmental Health, Neuherberg [D], University of Colorado [USA], University of Warwick [UK], University of Ferrara [I]) has led to publication of this important study demonstrating that alignment of dosing time of usual antihypertensives with personal chronotype could lower the incidence of non-fatal MI compared to a ‘misaligned’ dosing time regimen. These results open to future studies to establish whether synchronizing administration time of antihypertensive therapy with individual chronotype reduces risk of MI, improving the impact of blood pressure medication in reducing cardiovascular disease.
The study was published in eClinMed (part of The Lancet Group) - Pigazzani F, Dyar KA, Morant SV, Vetter C, Rogers A, Flynn RWV, Rorie DA, Mackenzie IS, Cappuccio FP, Manfredini R, MacDonald TM. Effect of timed dosing of usual antihypertensives according to patient chronotype on cardiovascular outcomes: the Chronotype sub-study cohort of the Treatment in Morning versus Evening (TIME) study. eClinicalMedicine 2024; 72: 102633.
The results were reported widely through national and international media.
See some examples here:
BBC Scotland (at 42:00 min) | The Times | Daily Express | The Independent | MSN | Newsweek | Gazzetta dello Sport
In Memoriam: Prof. Jim Horne
Jim Horne, Sleep Neuroscientist − BSc, MSc, PhD, DSc, FRSB, FBPsS, CPsych, CBiol
Emeritus Professor of Psychophysiology, School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences at Loughborough University, United Kingdom
Michelle Miller , Franco Cappuccio and the whole team at Warwick Medical School join the international scientific community in remembering the towering role of Jim Horne in shaping modern sleep research.
Read the Obituary written by Prof. Clare Anderson on behalf of the British Psychological Society and the European Sleep Research Society.
Constant light causes harm to head and heart | Chris interviewed the University of Warwick's Francesco Cappuccio about the health impacts of light pollution...
Listen to the podcast
Studies show most Americans are sleep deprived
Less than one third of American adults are achieving restorative sleep. A new study reveals multiple factors are causing the sleep deprivation crisis. | by Simon Kaufman | Posted: 2:15 p.m. EST Feb 16, 2023
See the interview featuring Prof Cappuccio
In Memoriam: Prof. Gregory (Greg) Stores, who contributed greatly to the understanding of epilepsy and sleep disorders
Gregory Stores, Professor of Developmental Neuropsychiatry at the University of Oxford, passed away on 21st December 2022.
Michelle Miller , Franco Cappuccio and the whole team at Warwick Medical School celebrate Greg's contribution to the understanting of sleep disorders and remember his dedication, friendship and generous contribution to the development and early delivery of the Sleep, Health & Society teaching programme at Warwick.
Born in 1938 and raised in Stockport by parents William and Marion, Greg went to school at St Bede’s College where he became Head Boy and spent many happy hours of his youth in Stockport Library. His first degree was in Psychology, after which he went on to study Medicine at the University of Manchester. He not only excelled in his studies but also had a passion for athletics, competing in throwing events including the hammer up to County, Northern Counties and British Universities representative levels. After graduating in 1967 he worked in various hospitals across the North of England before moving to Oxford. Greg completed a Visiting Fellowship at Yale University Department of Neurology in 1974, and became a Consultant in 1976, working at the Park Hospital in Headington in both sleep disorder and epilepsy services for patients of all ages referred from throughout the United Kingdom, and was Director for the Oxford Regional Paediatric EEG Service. During this period his research grant total was in the region of £1m principally in support of studies in children’s sleep disorders. One of his most significant contributions to the diagnosis of childhood epilepsy was his introduction of ambulatory EEG in real life settings. This technique has become the worldwide standard for research and clinical investigation of epilepsy and sleep disorders in patients of all ages.
He was elected as Fellow of both the Royal College of Psychiatrists (1981) and the Royal College of Physicians (1983). He became Professor of Developmental Neuropsychiatry and Fellow of Linacre College at the University of Oxford in 1999 due to his extensive research and publications in epilepsy and sleep disorders. Greg taught undergraduate and postgraduate groups in medicine and allied disciplines. He both organised and was invited to be a keynote speaker at conferences around the world due to his international reputation and significant contribution in the field. He also made national and international television and radio appearances and press contributions. He authored many highly cited academic journal articles, and was an author and editor of several books including “A Clinical Guide to Sleep Disorders in Children and Adolescents” and “Sleep and its Disorders in Children and Adolescents with a Neurodevelopmental Disorder”, and wrote chapters in many more.
After retiring from clinical work, Greg continued to publish and was a Visiting Lecturer at Warwick Medical School and University College London’s Institute of Child Health. He completed a Postgraduate Certificate in History of Medicine at Oxford Brookes University and enjoyed often presenting at local history groups on such topics as “Maladies of Medieval Monks”, “The History and Folklore of European Witchcraft and Attempts to Combat its Influence” and “Charles Dickens as Social Reformer and Medical Observer”. Having lived in Dorchester on Thames for almost 40 years he had a fond relationship with the Abbey where he was a steward, regularly taking visiting groups on historical tours of the building. Greg has always had an interest in 17th century and earlier oak furniture, carvings and related items and had an eye for quality pieces as evidenced by his fine collection.
Obituary written by Dr Rachel Stores
World Sleep Congress
Rome, March 11-16, 2022
World Sleep 2022 is a global scientific congress bringing the best of sleep medicine and research to Rome, Italy, March 11–16, 2022. The World Sleep congress, now in its 16th iteration, consistently gathers the best minds in sleep medicine and research for multiple days of scientific sessions and networking. As a truly global meeting—77 countries were represented at World Sleep 2019—World Sleep presents a unique opportunity for sleep medicine professionals no matter their specialty or career stage.
The World Sleep congress gathers the best in sleep medicine and research. The latest updates in the scientific schedule will always be available in the online schedule.
On March 12th, Prof Francesco Cappuccio, as part of the Faculty, was invited to take part in a 4-h course on How to conduct epidemiologic studies of sleep. Epidemiology helps us understand the risks associated with sleep problems. This course reviewed what we have learned about sleep disorders from the major epidemiological studies as well as explained the methodology behind epidemiology. The course had the following learning objectives: to understand the principles of the design and interpretation of epidemiological studies; to identify specific methodological considerations in sleep epidemiology; to discuss approaches to measuring sleep in epidemiologic studies; to review some of the evidence about sleep disorders learned from major epidemiological studies; to discuss special topics in sleep epidemiology.
Programme:
Introduction: Yue Leng (USA), Katie Stones (USA)
Assessment of sleep in cohort studies: (Katie Stone, USA)
Introduction for epidemiology: study design, confounding and bias: (Yue Leng, USA)
Search for causality in epidemiology: the case of sleep: (Francesco Cappuccio, UK)
'Sleep health' and machine learning approaches: (Meredith Wallace, USA)
Genetics of sleep: (Richa Saxena, USA)
Discussion with Q&A
In Memoriam: William D Dement (1928-2020), a pioneer in the field of Sleep Medicine
Read the tribute of colleagues from around the world.
From a Social Distance: Coronavirus and its impact on our sleep
Dr Michelle Miller explains how the pandemic may have affected our sleep, and the simple steps we can take to help ensure we get a more restful night.
CORONAVIRUS: WHY SLEEP GAPS MAY WIDEN DURING AND AFTER THE CRISIS
by Simon J Williams and Rob Meadows
Simon Williams (Emeritus Professor of Sociology at the University of Warwick) and Rob Meadows (Reader in Sociology at the University of Surrey) reflect on the short- and long-term consequences of the Coronavirus Pandemic on our sleep patterns and their social, health and political implications.
Read their piece HERELink opens in a new window.
How To Stop Coronavirus Nightmares From Ruining A Good Night’s Sleep
A scientist explains how to sleep in very hot weather!
Dr Michelle Miller talks to the BBC Science Correspondent Dr David Gregory-Kumar (24 July 2019)
Sleep and cardio-metabolic risk - a new dimension for prevention and management
Presented by Prof F P Cappuccio at the European Society of Hypertension, Milan, June 2019
Chrono-nutrition: circadian clocks, mealtime and metabolic disorders
The Royal Society of Medicine, London, 12th November 2018
This meeting provides a unique multidisciplinary opportunity to focus on the relationship between the human circadian system, physiological processes and nutrition as well as the impact of their integrative roles in the development of metabolic disorders. See programme.
German Aerospace Center, Institute of Aerospace Medicine
Cologne, Germany; 30th October 2018
Prof F P Cappuccio held a seminar on "Sleep deprivation and cardio-metabolic disease"
Please visit the website and see the programme here
Medicine and me: living with narcolepsy
The Royal Society of Medicine, London, 27th October 2018; 12:30 - 5:30pm
Hear from experts in the field of sleep research and narcolepsy
British and Irish Hypertension Society, Cambridge 2018
Dr Michelle A Miller presents her latest results on 'Shorter sleep duration predicts incident obesity in children: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies' at the Annual Scientific Meeting of the BIHS
Public Engagement Fund supports the launch of
'Sleep Health and Society' Book
The funding was used for a book launch to showcase the second edition of our book. Follow the link.
Listen to the Radio interview on BBC Coventry & Warwickshire to Prof FP Cappuccio.
see highlights from the Book Launch below
Sleep, Health and Society, 2nd edition: now out!
June 2018
Prof Francesco Cappuccio and Dr Michelle Miller display off the press copies of their latest book produced
in collaboration with Dr Steven Lockley from Harvard and Prof Shantha Rajaratnam from Monash.
Get you tickets for the official launch taking place in Warwick on 7th June.
Also follow the PRESS RELEASE
Sleep, Health and Society, 2nd edition: out soon!
May 2018
The future of health
Pint of Science Festival
Coventry, 14-16 May, 2018
Have you ever wondered what is sleep? How do we know when to sleep? How much sleep do we need? In this talk Michelle will explore these questions and more. You'll hear about the implications of changes in society upon sleep patterns, the concept of sleep loss and sleep debt, and the potential implications of sleep disturbances (both quality and quantity) for both our society and also for individuals. For example did you know sleep loss may be a possible causative factor for disease development? Join us for a fascinating talk and some all important tips for a good night's sleep!
Come and listen to the Sleep, Health and Society's tips from Dr Michelle Miller on 16th May.
The Truth about Slim People
Channel 4, 8th November 2017
Follow the link to watch the programme featuring also Prof Francesco Cappuccio talking
about the role of a good night sleep in preventing weight gain
British Sleep Society Meeting, Brighton 2017
Dr Michelle A Miller received an Excellence Award from the British Sleep Society for short Oral and Poster communication 'Shorter sleep duration predicts incident obesity in children: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies'. Congratulations Michelle!
Winning the Battle for the Night by Faith Blatchford (2017)
Did you know that poor sleep habits can increase the risk of serious health conditions? Michelle Miller recommends following the advice in Faith's new book, Winning the Battle for the night.
International Aging and Sleep Meeting, Lyon 2017
On 29th & 30th June 2017 Dr Michelle A Miller gave two invited lectures at the International Aging and Sleep meeting in Lyon. The first was entitled ‘Cognitive Impairment Related to Sleep and Sleep Disorders’ and the second ‘Biomarkers of Cardiovascular Risk in Sleep Deprived People’.
European Stroke Conference, Berlin 2017
On 26th May 2017 Dr Michelle A Miller gave an invited lecture at the European Stroke Conference in Berlin. Her talk ‘Effects of Sleep on Cardiovascular Outcomes and Wellbeing’ was part of the symposium ‘Stroke rehabilitation – What’s sleep got to do with it?’ Chaired by Professor A Sterr from the UK and Dr M Ouellet from Canada.
New Statesman (Aug 2016)
“You snooze, you lose - A history of sleep from
the premoderns to today’s health geeks”
by Sophie McBain
A brilliant and amusing account of the growing interest of the so-called “sleep revolution”, popularised in the United States by Arianna Huffington. She goes through the evidence backing up the concept that little sleep may be harmful to health. The only explicit quote you will find is of research carried out at the University of Warwick (sic!). She writes with wit and humour and shows a great deal of scepticism at times. I particularly like her quote “A true sleep revolution would be a campaign against poverty, low-paid and insecure labour, poor housing, violence, mental illness”, wrapping up the spirit of our Sleep, Health & Society Programme overall objective.
Dealing with insomnia:
BBC Radio 4: Woman's Hour (05/05/2016)
Kim Cattrall's revelations about insomnia on Woman's Hour led to a big response from listeners. Professor Franco Cappuccio, Head of the Sleep Health & Society Programme at the University of Warwick, discusses dealing with sleeplessness and addresses some of the problems people got in touch about. Presenter: Jenni Murray, Producer: Anne Peacock.
Sleep and Cognition in the life-course: from development to decline.
Public Engagement Seminar, 2014
Programme: http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/med/news/events/sleep
Introduction. Prof G Tadros
Sleep disturbances and ill-health. Prof FP Cappuccio
How do we measure sleep and cognition? Dr H Wright
Sleep disturbances and cognitive function with ageing. Dr MA Miller
Sleep: Is too much as bad as too little?
by Lauren Rosewasrne, 2014
In 2012, our research group was listed as European Society of Sleep Research 'Research Laboratory'.
Read summaries of key research findings:
Sleep and Cardiovascular Disease
Book launch: Sleep, Health & Society (Oxford University Press), 2010
Why not getting enough sleep could lead to an early grave, 2008
Prof Franco Cappuccio explains why not getting enough sleep can lead to a reduced life expectancy
Are we getting enough sleep?
Lack of sleep not only causes errors and accidents but could also make you put on weight. Find out how sleep research could change your life by listening to Prof Franco Cappuccio presenting at the ThinkTank Theatre in Birmingham in May 2006.
Sleep and Obesity at AC21 Meeting, 2006
If you don't get enough sleep, you are at risk of getting fatter! In fact, you will have doubled your risk of becoming obese! By studying current evidence a team of researchers at the University of Warwick have discovered that sleeping less than 5 hours a night is associated with almost a twofold increase in the risk of obesity. Concerns over obesity have long been widespread in the USA, but now the World Health Organization is looking at increases in Europe too, and is developing a charter to organise immediate action to curb obesity in the region.
e-mail: sleepresearch@warwick.ac.uk
Twitter: @SocietySleep
Leads
Prof Francesco Cappuccio and Prof Michelle Miller lead the programme on Sleep, Health and Society, studying the implications of sleep disturbances on quantity and quality of sleep and ensuing daytime sleepiness, and determinants of physical and mental ill-health and general wellbeing. The socio-economic hormonal and biochemical mechanisms mediating these effects are also being explored.
Furthermore, the programme studies the health effects of shift working and its implications on safety, fatigue, quality of life and productivity.
The programme engages researchers across all faculties of the University of Warwick, and has several national and international collaborations
Projects
Collaborators
Dr Andrew Hall (Leicester)
Dr Chris Hanning (Leicester)
Dr Steven Lockley (Harvard)
Prof Vinod Patel (Warwick)
Prof Gregory Stores ¶ (Oxford)(dec)
Dr Nicole Tang (Warwick)
Prof Dieter Wolke (Warwick/WMS)
Research students
Road Safety Bill
Teaching
Podcasts & Recordings
Publications incl. books
Public Engagement
Useful Links
Alignment of dosing time of blood pressure medications with personal chronotype could lower the incidence of heart attacks compared to 'misaligned' regimen.
Read the latest evidence in eClinMed
A new on-line training programme on hypertension. Take a look at the modules regarding sleep.
Chi non dorme fa un azzardo. E il cuore paga. di Giuseppe Del Bello. La Repubblica (10/09/2019)
Falls are more likely when you've had a bad night sleep
Read the latest results of research at Warwick just published in Nature Scientific Reports.
UK Parliamentary Brief and Notes
Sleep, Health and Society
Cappuccio FP, Miller MA, Lockley SW, Rajaratnam SW eds.
Oxford University Press (2018)
We couldn't do it better! Watch this 'viral' example of good science communication.
MSc and PhD Projects Available
As part of the Division of Mental Health & Wellbeing, we provide a doctoral training programme in Sleep Research, Cardiovascular and Nutritional epidemiology and public health. We have a strong track record in supervising and supporting students to successful completion of their doctoral research. We also consider mentoring 'PhD by Publication' in these areas. We do not currently have funded projects. We would welcome applications for self-funded candidates who wish to undertake a PhD with us.
Examples of projects include: Relationship between sleep disturbances and adverse pregnancy outcomes; Longitudinal analyses of sleep and cognition; Systematic review and meta-analysis of sleep disturbances as precurosrs or triggers of depression; Sleep problems and functional impairment in young people at risk of developing psychiatric disorders; Stroke in Bangladeshi immigrants in the United Kingdom;
For further details please contact michelle.miller@warwick.ac.uk or f.p.cappuccio@warwick.ac.uk