Sleep

1. Sleepwell supported · human dataAdded 8 October 2026

   Tai chi helps people with insomnia sleep better, and lifts mood too

   Pooled results from randomised trials found Tai chi improved sleep quality in people with insomnia, lowering Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index scores by 1.75 points, and also reduced depression and anxiety scores.

   ⚠What it shows: Promising but imperfect: results pooled from several randomised trials of people with insomnia all pointed the same way. Participants inevitably knew they were practising Tai chi and many trials described their methods thinly, so expectation could explain part of the benefit.Meta-analysis · Int J Environ Res Public Health

   Full breakdown →Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) explained →Sleep Calculator →Effects of Tai Chi on Sleep Quality as Well as Depression and Anxiety in Insomnia Patients: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2023
2. Sleepwell supported · human dataAdded 7 October 2026

   Weight-loss jabs ease sleep apnoea, but they will not replace the mask

   Pooled across six randomised trials in 1,069 adults with moderate to severe obstructive sleep apnoea, GLP-1 based drugs (liraglutide or tirzepatide) cut apnoea events by about 10 per hour and body weight by 9.68 kg versus control, with small blood pressure reductions too. Oxygen measures during sleep did not significantly improve, and the reviewers stress the drugs are not a substitute for CPAP.

   ⚠What it shows: Solid enough to take seriously: results pooled from six trials where people were assigned at random, 1,069 adults in total, all testing liraglutide or tirzepatide. The trials disagreed with each other on how big the benefits were, so treat the exact figures loosely, and the oxygen dips that make apnoea harmful did not clearly improve.Meta-analysis · Sleep Breath

   Full breakdown →GLP-1 explained →GLP-1 receptor agonists for obstructive sleep apnea: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Sleep Breath 2026
3. Sleeppreliminary · human dataAdded 6 October 2026

   A warm foot bath before bed helped older adults sleep better

   Warm foot baths before bed, typically with water above 40 degrees Celsius, were linked to better sleep quality in older adults in 9 of the 10 studies reviewed.

   ⚠What it shows: Encouraging but not yet rigorous: a sweep of 10 small studies in older adults, not all of them properly randomised. The results pointed the same way, but nobody has pooled the numbers to say how big the benefit actually is.Systematic review · BMC Geriatr

   Full breakdown →Optimising Your Sleep Environment →Sleep Calculator →The effect of foot bath on sleep quality in the elderly: a systematic review. BMC Geriatr 2024
4. Sleeppreliminary · human dataAdded 5 October 2026

   Tai chi plus brain stimulation topped the rankings for better sleep

   Across 18 randomised trials in people with sleep disorders, traditional Chinese mind-body exercise improved outcomes: tai chi combined with transcranial magnetic stimulation ranked best for sleep quality, while tai chi and Baduanjin both significantly improved quality of life.

   ⚠What it shows: Decent but messy evidence: pooled results from 18 trials where people were assigned at random, and the trials disagreed with each other on how big the benefits were. The standout sleep result also required transcranial magnetic stimulation alongside the exercise, which is clinic equipment rather than something you can do at home.Systematic review · Front Psychiatry

   Full breakdown →Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) explained →Sleep Calculator →A comparative study of traditional Chinese mind-body therapies on sleep quality, mental health, and quality of life in patients with sleep disorders: a network meta-analysis based on randomized controlled trials. Front Psychiatry 2026
5. Sleepwell supported · human dataAdded 4 October 2026

   Treating insomnia eased back pain, not just the sleep

   In a meta-analysis of 24 randomised trials, established sleep interventions such as cognitive behavioural therapy improved both sleep and pain in people with low back pain, cutting pain scores by 12.77 points on a 100-point scale. In osteoarthritis they improved sleep but not pain.

   ⚠What it shows: Fairly convincing for back pain: results pooled from 24 trials, and the pain benefit was consistent across the studies. The trials varied a lot in what they tested, and the authors themselves call for more rigorous work before treating this as settled.Meta-analysis · Osteoarthritis Cartilage

   Full breakdown →Optimising Your Sleep Environment →Sleep Calculator →Sleep interventions for osteoarthritis and spinal pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Osteoarthritis Cartilage 2019
6. Sleeppreliminary · human dataAdded 3 October 2026

   Your high-protein diet is not wrecking your sleep

   Pooled results from 12 randomised trials found no significant effect of increased protein intake on sleep quality, sleep time, sleep latency or sleep efficiency in adults, with very low certainty of evidence. A check excluding the weakest trials hinted at a small improvement in sleep quality with higher protein.

   ⚠What it shows: A useful null, but a soft one: results pooled from 12 trials in adults found no clear effect of extra protein on any sleep measure, and the overall evidence was rated very low certainty. A check that dropped the weakest trials hinted at slightly better sleep quality with more protein, so the question is not fully closed.Meta-analysis · Nutr Rev

   Full breakdown →Protein explained →Protein Intake Calculator →Protein intake and its effect on sleep outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Nutr Rev 2023
7. Sleeppreliminary · human dataAdded 3 October 2026

   Exercise eased sleep apnoea without the weight loss everyone assumes it needs

   Pooled trial data suggest supervised exercise training reduces obstructive sleep apnoea severity by 6.27 breathing interruptions per hour, alongside better fitness, less daytime sleepiness and higher sleep efficiency, with minimal change in body weight.

   ⚠What it shows: Promising but thin: pooled results from just 5 trials totalling 129 people, measured before and after exercise rather than against a comparison group, so some of the improvement could have other explanations.Meta-analysis · Lung

   Full breakdown →Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) explained →VO2max Calculator →Effects of exercise training on sleep apnea: a meta-analysis. Lung 2014
8. Sleeppreliminary · human dataAdded 1 October 2026

   New mothers' night sleep is the measure most tied to postpartum depression

   A review of 19 actigraphy studies found that total night-time sleep after childbirth was the sleep measure most strongly linked to postpartum depression, and was also related to postpartum fatigue.

   ⚠What it shows: An association, not proof that short nights cause postpartum depression: a sweep of 19 studies that tracked new mothers with wrist-worn monitors rather than testing an intervention. The authors say more work is needed, especially on sleep rhythms during pregnancy itself.Meta-analysis · J Sleep Res

   Full breakdown →Sleep Calculator →Sleep, circadian activity patterns and postpartum depression: A systematic review and meta-analysis of actigraphy studies. J Sleep Res 2024
9. Sleepwell supported · human dataAdded 30 September 2026

   Insomnia therapy works for heavy drinkers, but it does not cut the drinking

   Pooled results from eight randomised trials in 426 adults with heavy alcohol use or alcohol use disorder found that cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia produced a large drop in insomnia severity, an estimated 5.51 points on the standard insomnia scale, with benefits still present at six months. Alcohol-related outcomes such as craving and drinking days showed no significant improvement.

   ⚠What it shows: Solid for the sleep result: results pooled from eight trials covering 426 adults, judged at low to moderate risk of bias, with the benefit holding at six months. The drinkers studied were mostly men, and alcohol outcomes were reported so inconsistently that the lack of drinking benefit is far less certain.Meta-analysis · Sleep Med Rev

   Full breakdown →Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) explained →Sleep Calculator →Cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia across the spectrum of alcohol use disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Sleep Med Rev 2025
10. Sleepwell supported · human dataAdded 29 September 2026

    Only one type of sleep app meaningfully beats insomnia

    In pooled results from 96 randomised trials with 18,419 participants, digital CBT reduced insomnia severity scores by 4.24 points versus control, the only one of six digital sleep therapies to reach a clinically meaningful improvement. Neurofeedback, digital brief behavioural therapy and circadian support apps showed no significant effects on any outcome.

    ⚠What it shows: The headline result rests on moderate-quality evidence pooled from 96 trials in 18,419 people, which is unusually strong for sleep tech. Most other comparisons were less certain, and only 2 of the trials were judged fully rigorous, so rankings between app types stay tentative.Meta-analysis · BMC Med

    Full breakdown →Optimising Your Sleep Environment →Sleep Calculator →The effectiveness of digital therapeutics in improving sleep quality: a systematic review and network meta-analysis. BMC Med 2026
11. Sleepwell supported · human dataAdded 28 September 2026

    36% of women follow a poor sleep path from pregnancy through the first year

    Pooled data from studies following women from pregnancy to one year postpartum found 36% followed a nonoptimal sleep quality trajectory and 22% a nonoptimal sleep duration trajectory. These high-risk sleep paths were associated with worse outcomes for both mothers and infants.

    ⚠What it shows: Solid for describing patterns: it pools studies that each followed at least 100 women with repeated sleep checks from pregnancy to a year after birth. It tracks how sleep unfolds rather than testing any fix, so it cannot say poor sleep caused the worse outcomes it was linked to.Meta-analysis · Sleep

    Full breakdown →Optimising Your Sleep Environment →Sleep Calculator →Trajectories of sleep health during the perinatal period: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Sleep 2025
12. Sleeppreliminary · human dataAdded 27 September 2026

    Progesterone helped postmenopausal women fall asleep faster, but not sleep longer

    Micronised progesterone shortened the time it took to fall asleep in pooled trial data, mostly from postmenopausal women, but did not significantly improve total sleep time or sleep efficiency. Self-reported sleep improved in most trials.

    ⚠What it shows: Promising but thin: only 9 trials totalling 388 people, almost all postmenopausal women, and the trials disagreed with each other. Several also gave oestrogen at the same time, which muddies what the progesterone alone achieved.Meta-analysis · J Clin Endocrinol Metab

    Full breakdown →Progesterone explained →Sleep Calculator →Efficacy of Micronized Progesterone for Sleep: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trial Data. J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2021
13. Sleepwell supported · human dataAdded 26 September 2026

    Caffeine thins your deep sleep even when you fall asleep just fine

    A systematic review of 32 human studies found caffeine consistently suppresses the slow-wave brain activity that marks deep sleep and increases faster, more wake-like brain activity, producing lighter sleep even when conventional sleep-stage measures barely change.

    ⚠What it shows: A solid picture from a sweep of all the studies on this, 32 in total, but the studies disagreed with each other too much to pool into one number, so the findings were summarised in words. How big the effect is for you depends on dose, timing, how habitually you use caffeine, your age and your genetics.Systematic review · Nutrients

    Full breakdown →Caffeine guide →Caffeine Half-Life Calculator →The Caffeinated Brain Part 2: The Effect of Caffeine on Sleep-Related Electroencephalography (EEG)-A Systematic and Mechanistic Review. Nutrients 2026
14. Sleepwell supported · human dataAdded 23 September 2026

    Online insomnia therapy works about as well as the in-person kind

    Internet-delivered cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia improved insomnia severity, sleep efficiency, sleep quality and total sleep time across 11 randomised trials totalling 1460 people. The effects were comparable to face-to-face therapy and were generally maintained 4 to 48 weeks later.

    ⚠What it shows: Strong for a digital treatment: results pooled from 11 trials with 1460 people showed benefits across every sleep measure, though gains were larger when programmes ran longer and included more human support, and shrank in trials where many people dropped out.Meta-analysis · Sleep Med Rev

    Full breakdown →Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) explained →Sleep Calculator →Efficacy of internet-delivered cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia - A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Sleep Med Rev 2016
15. Sleepwell supported · human dataAdded 21 September 2026

    Treating insomnia without pills also eases long-term pain

    Pooled results from 11 randomised trials in 1,066 adults with long-term pain found that non-drug sleep treatments produced a large improvement in sleep quality, a moderate improvement in fatigue and a small reduction in pain. The sleep and fatigue gains held at follow-up of up to 1 year, when a moderate reduction in depression also appeared.

    ⚠What it shows: Strong for the sleep effect, modest for the rest: results pooled from 11 trials in 1,066 adults with long-term pain, with no sign that flattering results were cherry-picked for publication. The body of evidence is still small, and face-to-face treatment beat phone or internet delivery.Meta-analysis · Sleep

    Full breakdown →Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) explained →Sleep Calculator →Nonpharmacological Treatments of Insomnia for Long-Term Painful Conditions: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Patient-Reported Outcomes in Randomized Controlled Trials. Sleep 2015
16. Sleeppreliminary · human dataAdded 21 September 2026

    Chinese medicine edged out drugs for menopause insomnia

    Across 48 randomised trials in 5,037 women in China, traditional Chinese medicine outperformed Western medicine for perimenopausal insomnia, improving sleep quality scores and hormone levels with fewer reported adverse reactions. The reviewers flag methodological limitations across the evidence.

    ⚠What it shows: Take the headline with real caution: results pooled from 48 trials in 5,037 women, all in China, but the reviewers flag weak methods and studies that disagreed with each other, so the size of the advantage is unreliable. Better-designed trials are needed before this counts as settled.Systematic review · Front Neurol

    Full breakdown →Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) explained →Efficacy and security of traditional Chinese medicine in the treatment of perimenopausal insomnia in the Chinese population: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Front Neurol 2026
17. Sleepwell supported · human dataAdded 20 September 2026

    Nobody knows how much broken sleep it takes to harm your health

    A systematic review of 92 human studies found that while sleep disturbance may be linked to changes in blood pressure, stress hormones, blood sugar and other biomarkers, the certainty of the evidence is very low, and no threshold of disturbance at which harm begins could be identified.

    ⚠What it shows: The headline here is uncertainty itself: a sweep of 92 human studies on disturbed sleep found possible links to blood pressure, hormones and blood sugar, but the studies disagreed with each other and many were at risk of bias. Nobody can yet say how much disturbance, or for how long, starts to matter.Systematic review · J Sleep Res

    Full breakdown →Optimising Your Sleep Environment →Sleep Calculator →Effect of sleep disturbance on biomarkers related to the development of adverse health outcomes: A systematic review of the human literature. J Sleep Res 2023
18. Sleeppreliminary · human dataAdded 19 September 2026

    An altitude sickness pill shows promise against sleep apnoea

    A sweep of 17 randomised trials found acetazolamide, a drug best known for altitude sickness, generally improved overnight oxygen levels and reduced breathing disruptions in sleep apnoea. In obstructive sleep apnoea at low altitude, reported reductions in breathing-event rates ranged from roughly 42 to 69.4%, though effects varied widely by context.

    ⚠What it shows: Encouraging but not yet a treatment you can count on: the 17 trials disagreed with each other so much that their results could not be combined into one number, and the size of the benefit swung widely between types of apnoea and settings. The reviewers themselves say large, long-term trials are needed to work out dosing and who actually responds.Review · Int Orthod

    Full breakdown →Efficacy of acetazolamide in adult sleep apnea: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials. Int Orthod 2026
19. Sleeppreliminary · human dataAdded 17 September 2026

    Your sleeping pill may still be driving with you the next morning

    In pooled driving tests in healthy adults, most sleep medications at approved doses left next-morning driving no worse than placebo. Drugs that did impair it included zolpidem 10 mg, triazolam 0.5 mg, ramelteon 8 mg, daridorexant 100 mg and mirtazapine, while most medications beat zopiclone.

    ⚠What it shows: Treat this as a useful map, not a verdict: the authors rated their own confidence in the evidence as low or very low. It pools 22 trials of next-morning driving tests, almost all in healthy volunteers rather than people with insomnia.Meta-analysis · Eur Neuropsychopharmacol

    Full breakdown →Residual effects of medications for sleep disorders on driving performance: A systematic review and network meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials: NMA driving and hypnotics. Eur Neuropsychopharmacol 2024
20. Sleepwell supported · human dataAdded 16 September 2026

    The counterintuitive insomnia fix: spend less time in bed

    Pooled results from nine randomised trials in 1239 adults found that sleep restriction therapy on its own reduced insomnia severity, shortened the time to fall asleep and improved sleep efficiency, sleep quality and time awake during the night, while cutting total sleep time as the treatment intends. At follow-up the gains in insomnia severity, sleep efficiency and night-time waking held, but faster sleep onset did not.

    ⚠What it shows: About as solid as insomnia evidence gets in the short term: results pooled from nine trials in 1239 adults all pointed the same way. The wrinkle is durability, since the benefit for falling asleep faster had faded by longer follow-up and total sleep time drops at first by design.Meta-analysis · J Sleep Res

    Full breakdown →Optimising Your Sleep Environment →Sleep Calculator →The Effect of Single-Component Sleep Restriction Therapy for Insomnia in Adults: A Meta-Analysis of Randomised Controlled Trials. J Sleep Res 2026
21. Sleepwell supported · human dataAdded 14 September 2026

    An app with no therapist attached can still treat insomnia

    Across 15 randomised trials with 3,507 adults, fully automated digital cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia produced substantial reductions in insomnia severity and consistent improvements in falling asleep and sleep efficiency, with no robust differences between delivery platforms.

    ⚠What it shows: Strong evidence: 15 trials pooled across 3,507 adults, with consistent results and little disagreement left between studies once their differences were accounted for. Newer trials tended to show smaller effects and few studies were app-based, so comparisons between platforms remain tentative.Meta-analysis · Sleep Breath

    Full breakdown →Sleep Calculator →Efficacy of fully automated digital cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Sleep Breath 2026
22. Sleepwell supported · human dataAdded 13 September 2026

    Digital insomnia therapy works for troops, and it lasts

    Digital cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia produced a moderate-to-large reduction in insomnia severity in serving military personnel and veterans across five pooled randomised trials, with improvements maintained for up to 12 months where follow-up data existed.

    ⚠What it shows: Effective on the evidence so far, but the base is thin: results pooled from just five trials of serving personnel and veterans, and dropout plus patchy reporting left the risk of bias unclear or high. The certainty of the evidence was judged moderate rather than strong.Meta-analysis · Sleep Med

    Full breakdown →Sleep Calculator →Efficacy of digital cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia in Armed Forces and Veteran populations - A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. Sleep Med 2026
23. Sleepwell supported · human dataAdded 12 September 2026

    For menopausal insomnia, therapy and yoga beat pills on sleep quality

    Pooled trial evidence in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women with chronic insomnia found non-drug approaches, led by cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia along with acupuncture, yoga and massage, improved sleep quality on more measures than medication did. Neither approach increased total sleep time.

    ⚠What it shows: A careful pooling of 17 trials in menopausal women, mostly rated good to excellent in quality. Sleep was judged largely by questionnaires, and no treatment added actual sleep time, so the gains rest on how sleep felt rather than how long it lasted.Meta-analysis · Sleep Med

    Full breakdown →Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) explained →Sleep Calculator →Pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments for chronic insomnia in perimenopausal and postmenopausal women: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Sleep Med 2026
24. Sleepwell supported · human dataAdded 11 September 2026

    New fathers scrape under seven hours of sleep a night

    Pooled data from 47 studies of 9684 fathers across 17 countries put average sleep at 398.29 minutes a night in the first 24 months after birth, with pooled sleep quality scores in the poor range and just over one night awakening on average.

    ⚠What it shows: A solid snapshot of a neglected group: results pooled from 47 studies of 9684 fathers, though the studies disagreed with each other a great deal on every measure. Most of the data comes from North America, where paternity leave is scarce, so fathers elsewhere may fare differently.Meta-analysis · Sleep Health

    Full breakdown →Optimising Your Sleep Environment →Sleep Calculator →Fathers' sleep in the first 24 months postpartum: A systematic review and meta-analysis of global data. Sleep Health 2025

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