Sleep

FEELING BLEARY this morning? Up too late or too early? Medical science has now got a drug for you. Wake Forest University researchers recently reported that they've found a compound that temporarily restores normal cognitive functioning and short-term memory in the sleep-deprived, at least in tested monkeys. Human tests are under way. No, the chemical, labeled CX717, isn't coffee, which offers the potential for overstimulation and addiction. This new drug apparently improves the functioning of certain chemical receptors in certain parts of the brain without arousing the whole brain.

Michael Phelps has the money to pretty much sleep anywhere, in anything, that he wants. It turns out for the last year or so, the Olympian has been hitting the hay in a high-altitude sleeping chamber. Mention of the so-called "contraption" got a big eye-brow raise out of Anderson Cooper on Sunday's "60 Minutes. " "Inside Michael's apartment, an unusual contraption," Cooper said with drama. "A chamber he sleeps in that simulates high altitude. " And, Cooper added for effect: "He doesn't want anyone to see it, but he was willing to talk to us about it. " Phelps described the weirdness of heading into his bedroom, but then having to enter something else before retiring.

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In the four years since he made history at the Beijing Olympics, Michael Phelps concedes losing his focus. But with the London Games looming, the Baltimore swimmer told "60 Minutes" in an interview that will air Sunday that he has gone all-out recently and says he is now approaching the shape he was in before Beijing, where he won an unprecedented eight gold medals. His coach, Bob Bowman, predicts Phelps will again win multiple gold medals for the United States this summer.

Sleeping. We spend a third of our lives doing it, and yet we have to learn how, and some of us still have trouble with it after many years. Some sleep scientists believe most of us are getting 6 hours of sleep a night, when we actually need 8 or 10. Sleep experts say the key to getting to sleep is to have a routine, a set of behaviors practiced faithfully every night to "wind you down" and lead you into dreamland. Some suggested activities are stretching exercises to relax tension, drinking hot caffeine-free tea, or luxuriating in a warm bath.

In addition to all the reasons that being overweight is not good for you, there is evidence that it prevents you from sleeping well. Even worse, researchers warn of a vicious cycle of eating more when you are sleep-deprived. If more motivation were needed to make that New Year's resolution to shed those extra pounds, the prospect of not sleeping and gaining more weight should do it. The dangers of obesity are well known and can't be emphasized enough. There's the increased risk of diabetes, hypertension and heart problems that can lead to a poor quality of life and, at worst, a reduced life span.

The chronic sleep disorder that afflicts Ravens rookie linebacker Sergio Kindle is a common but often misdiagnosed condition that is treatable and should not affect his NFL career, according to experts in the study of narcolepsy. But the long-term effect is still being studied. University of Texas football coach Mack Brown disclosed last week that Kindle, 23, suffers from narcolepsy. It is unknown whether the disorder contributed to a recent fall at a house in Austin in which his skull was fractured.

A. M. Chaplin says that she demonstrated true reportoria involvement in this week's cover story on sleep. She got a two-week-long attack of insomnia while she was doing it, during which she felt, as every insomniac does, godawful. "I consoled myself," she says, "with deeply resentful thoughts about certain individuals who have the bad taste to sleep soundly while their spouses toss and turn miserably for hours."A. M. takes some small pleasure in pointing out the rotten sleep habits of sleep researchers.

Q. How much sleep does a person really need? My husband and I fight about this all the time. The only time I have to read or catch up on e-mail is after the children are in bed. Sometimes I don't get into bed until after midnight, and then I often have trouble falling asleep. I'm up at 6 to get everyone ready for the day. I don't think I need more sleep, and I function fine. My husband insists that people need eight hours. Is that true? A. Although everyone is different, sleep authorities insist that many folks do need about eight hours.

I am standing in the linen department of a large department store. There's a sale in progress. I am lovingly fingering the printed sheets with bright tulips. I move along to the Ralph Lauren designer sheets -- oooh, these are striking. Then I -- over to Calvin Klein and hug the gorgeous pillow cases. Ah, to be able to spend a night on any of these great designs.I love colorful sheets -- probably because he hates them so much. Besides, they didn't have printed sheets with all the neat colors when I was growing up.But he has a disease that I call Printed Sheet Shock Syndrome.

A celebration of the life of Greg Giovanazzi, former Olympic women's volleyball coach who also led programs at three area colleges, will be held Saturday at Towson University from noon to 3 p.m. Giovanazzi, 54, died in his sleep Monday after suffering from debilitating migraine headaches for more than half of his life. The memorial service will be informal, per his request, Deb Giovanazzi said. "We're asking people to wear Hawaiian shirts, sun dresses and flip-flops," his wife said.

About 8:30 Friday morning, Brian Dorr emerged, with a large smile and his arms raised, from the Apple Store at The Mall in Columbia, as blue-shirted employees cheered and slapped him high-fives. He and his wife, Donna, got what they came for: the third-generation iPad. While the rest of the mall's stores were closed and window displays were dark, a line formed around the second-floor Apple Store as shoppers gathered to purchase Apple's latest coveted gadget. Apple started selling its newest tablet Friday, betting that the sharper screen and faster chip will extend its lead over Google and Amazon.com in the growing market.

Are you tired, run-down, listless? The answer to your problem is probably not in a little brown bottle. It could be as simple as a good night's sleep. But for 45 million Americans, that's an elusive dream. Even worse, sleep deprivation, insomnia and untreated disorders such as sleep apnea are leading Americans down a slippery slope to early mortality, increasing their risk for obesity, stroke, hypertension, diabetes and cardiovascular problems. And that's not even counting the danger of falling asleep at the wheel.

Holiday parties are just a fancy cover, and traditional family dinners are simply an excuse. The truth is, all we want to do at this time of year is … eat. Winter days are shorter and colder, and the sunlight is weak. So is our will, and nothing fills that hole in the psyche like mom's meatloaf and scalloped potatoes. Or a slab of lasagna the size of a brick. Or a serving of spaghetti that would fill a garbage can lid. Carbs and home cookin' are feel-good foods. They either trigger the release of the feel-good hormone serotonin in the brain or they can bring back memories of happier times, when life was less complicated or sad. That's one explanation anyway.

All the presents have been opened; wrapping paper is strewn all over the house. The dog is wearing a large shiny bow, courtesy of the kids; while the cat has one end of a piece of curling ribbon hanging out of her mouth and the other end hanging out her … elsewhere. The joyful voices of happy children emanate from the next room. They're arguing over whose turn it is to play the new video game or hollering, "Quit it! Give me back my new (fill in the blank) or I'm gonna tell!" Good times.

Dr. Lewis B. Newberg, a retired ear, nose and throat specialist who turned his personal battle with sleep apnea and snoring into a book in which he combined humor and practical medical advice for those similarly afflicted, died Oct. 22 of heart failure at his Edgewater home. He was 72. The son of a businessman and a homemaker, Dr. Newberg was born in the Bronx, N.Y., and raised in Jamaica, N.Y., where he was a graduate of public schools. After earning a bachelor's degree from McGill University in Montreal, Canada, he earned his medical degree in 1964 from the Chicago Medical School.

WANT A well-rested work force? Dream on. We promise the boss the report will be on her desk at 8 a.m., then grab another cup of coffee. We laugh along with Jay Leno's monologue, then set the alarm for 6 a.m. After it rings, we hustle to get ready for our 80-minute commute. We get only six hours of shut-eye a night -- that is, if the snoring of our equally sleep-deprived mate doesn't keep us awake. We doze off at work, while idling at traffic lights, around the dinner table. We get irritable; we get heart disease; we make mistakes; we make our spouses feel devastatingly unattractive as we nod off in the easy chair to cap off another unromantic evening.

Dr. Lewis B. Newberg, a retired ear, nose and throat specialist who turned his personal battle with sleep apnea and snoring into a book in which he combined humor and practical medical advice for those similarly afflicted, died Oct. 22 of heart failure at his Edgewater home. He was 72. The son of a businessman and a homemaker, Dr. Newberg was born in the Bronx, N.Y., and raised in Jamaica, N.Y., where he was a graduate of public schools. After earning a bachelor's degree from McGill University in Montreal, Canada, he earned his medical degree in 1964 from the old Chicago Medical School.

Laurel police report felonies, arrests and property crimes. Prince George's County police report violent crimes and property crime. City of Laurel Ashford Court, 14800 block, Oct. 20. Entry gained through front door. Two males seen inside house by owner who was awoken from sleep. Victim yelled at males, and Dell laptop computer and Coby TV were recovered from them before they fled toward Fenwick Court into woods. Bowie Road, 14900 block, Oct. 20. Firefighter's helmet stolen from locker at Laurel Volunteer Rescue Squad.