Specifically, the women were 58 percent more likely to die from cardiovascular disease and 59 percent more likely to die from non-cardiovascular, non-cancer causes. For the study, published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, researchers studied 8,101 Caucasian women over age 69 for seven years. The researchers also found that older woman who slept 9-10 hours a day had a higher mortality rate than those who slept 8-9 hours per day. Yet, study co-author Katie L. Stone said that older people shouldn't avoid napping. "Since excessive sleep suggests that night time sleep is disrupted, interventions to treat sleep disorders and improve sleep quality in older women may reduce mortality risk," said Stone. [UPI]

[Image via Flickr.]

The victim of the Louisiana woman's crime is currently in the hospital for the single shot to her boyfriend's hip. When investigators arrived at the scene, the unnamed shooter lead them to a handgun that she'd concealed in some bushes. In an official statement, she claimed that he was keeping her from sleeping, which was her sole motive for the attack. While her methods are incredibly drastic, and probably indicate severe psychiatric problems, many of us have experienced frustration with our partners over loss of sleep (in my case, due to really, really loud snoring).

However, this isn't a problem for those happily married ladies out there! A new study has found that the best remedy for troubled (female) sleepers is a good marriage. Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh have found that women who report being happily married have less difficulty falling asleep-and staying asleep-than their single, or unhappily coupled, peers.

The research took into account other factors that may contribute to loss of sleep, such as depressive symptoms, economic hardship and employment status, alcohol and caffeine consumption, children and sexual activity. Wendy Troxel, lead researcher, said: "The results showed that even after taking into account all of these factors that are known to influence sleep, the level of marital happiness emerged as an independent risk factor for the existence of sleep disturbances." The study included women from different ethnicities and different economic groups.

La. Woman Allegedly Shoots Boyfriend Over Sleep [CBS]
Want a good night's sleep? Find the right partner [Reuters]

Image via Pets Photos

Jessica:
Ideal: Wake up at 6:30, with coffee already brewing in the automatic machine that I set up the night before. Go for a run at 6:45. Shower and at the computer by 7:30.
Actual: Drag ass out of bed at 7:30, rush to make coffee because I forgot to set up the machine early, and no shower. Complain bitterly to boyfriend about how tired I am until at least 7:50.

Dodai:
Ideal: wake at 6, run for half an hour, shower, begin working at 7
Romantic ideal: sleep til noon in hammock on tropical island
Actual: wake at 6:30, lay in bed and watch news to make sure planet has not been bombed while sleeping, walk 1 1/2 feet to desk and begin work at 7.

Megan
Ideal: Alarm goes off at 7:30, after which I immediately urinate, brush my teeth and sit down on my couch to begin reading political news in my pajamas. I also meet all my deadlines with 15 minutes to spare.
Actual: Alarm goes off at 7:30, I hit snooze at least twice and drag (possibly hungover) ass out of bed. If this happens after 7:52, I neither pee nor brush my teeth. I then stomp to the living room, flip open my computer to discover that Vista is truly the work of Satan, begin cursing under my breath while trying to read 50 political stories and write the two pieces I have due at 8:30 and 10, respectively, and eventually make coffee sometime after my deadlines have passed.

Sadie:
Ideal: up at 5:30, take brisk, invigorating walk. (NB: in this scenario I also live somewhere considerably more picturesque); 6:30 Make coffee, oatmeal, fresh juice; shower with Kiehl's product while coffee brews; eat in pristine kitchen while listening to Radio 4; 7:00 Dress in impeccably tailored cropped 1960s slacks, string of beads, menswear-style button-down and ballet flats. Work.
Actual: 7:15: up,usually because neighbor is screaming at other neighbor (who suffered hearing loss in Iraq) in Polish; Drink old coffee from yesterday, maybe heated up,e at yogurt straight from large container while I work on couch while surrounded by my boyfriend's ashtrays and papers (since he works at night); sometimes with 'Today' on mute; Don't dress or bathe until 11.30; Don't leave house until evening.

Anna:
Ideal: Sleep until 9:30 or 10. Take a long walk. Pet cats, read paper, drink coffee, fart around. Start working at 1pm, finish at 7pm. Continue drawing same paycheck.
Actual: Wake up at 6:30-45 on 6 hours' sleep, put on stinky sweatpants, t shirt (no bra), smoke a cigarette, read through 3-5,000 stories in my RSS feed and start sending emails to staffers (done by 8:15 or 8:30). Order breakfast. Cry. Wash, rinse, repeat.

Maria:
Ideal: Wake up at 6:30, exercise, shower, get dressed, eat breakfast, start work at 7:30
Actual: Wake up at 7:20, hit snooze until 7:30, start work in bed at 7:30. Eventually move to desk. Eat breakfast between 10-11. No shower.

Obviously, it's your turn... in the comments.

The Quest For The Perfect Morning Routine [Slate]

Dreaming Baby Schnozzle Cam [CuteOverload]

Some of the major problems between co-sleepers include snoring, kicking, and wrestling for the covers — but on a more basic level, each person has a different body clock, and some people are morning people (called "larks" by sleep experts) and some are night people (called owls). All of this is clearly common sense, but the Times called in sleep expert Sammy Margo to give a couple called the Millards some advice on how to deal with an owly husband and a wife who is neither lark nor owl.

Mr. Millard sounds like a total neurotic who has trouble sleeping, in part, because he's always worrying about shit. Mr. Margo tells him to quit the caffeine after lunch, eat foods low on the glycemic index, gnaw on turkey, Marmite, spinach, or any other food with tryptophan in it, and take a warm bath right before bed,. Mr. Millard wanted to follow Margo's advice, but he ended up lying awake and worrying about the advice instead! (Though he did appreciate the warm bath and eating more veggies.)

But enough about those boring old marrieds. The studies quoted by the Times also show that Lezebels have the best sleep among couples. "Sleep conflicts seem to be bound up with fundamental biological and behavioural differences between the sexes," says the Times. "For example, when Professor Jim Horne, the director of the Loughborough University Sleep Research Centre, attached movement monitors to men and women sleepers, he found that men moved much more than women and were far more likely to disturb women than the other way round." Ergo, two women sleeping together wouldn't cause each other much disturbance at all.

As for me and my old man, we made some compromises that helped us not kill each other at bedtime. We got two separate comforters so we weren't warring over one and I (theoretically) agreed to a lights off at midnight policy. There's something kind of lonely about the idea of a couple sleeping apart, though I know a lot of happy couples who do it. Does it work for any of you?

Sleeping Apart; The Key To A Happy Marriage [Times of London]
Twin Beds May Benefit Marriages [UPI]

Earlier: Can You Get A Decent Night's Sleep With A Loved One In Bed?