

Next Big Thing in health care: chronotherapy - tokenadult
http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/22/enter-the-chronotherapists/

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atamyrat
This looks like an opportunity for WakeMate (YC S09) guys.

Wouldn't it make sense for them to sell their current product as a general
purpose/programmable chronoconsultant device? What kind of sensors does the
device have? Can it be used to solve other health problems?

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lionhearted
If this sort of thing is fascinating to you, and you consume caffeine, you
absolutely _must_ spend the short time to learn about antagonistic and
reinforcing caffeine usage. I've read a few papers on it, but I'm not finding
any of the best ones by googling. This link has a short overview though:

<http://arvindn.livejournal.com/57651.html>

> What is common to these tasks is that progress happens in spurts, due to the
> fact that they involve frequent cognitive bottlenecks. A cognitive
> bottleneck can only be overcome when attention level exceeds a task
> dependent, typically very high threshold. Clearly, then, antagonistic
> caffeine consumption results in worse-than-normal productivity, because it
> flattens the attention level curve and decreases the fraction of time spent
> at peak attention level. Instead, reinforcing consumption helps maximize
> productivity (the red line). According to this strategy, the best time to
> drink coffee is when you are already very alert.

Basically, caffeine gives you a boost, then withdrawal. If you're doing
creative work, time your caffeine consumption to your high energy periods,
then rest during the withdrawal. If you're doing rote, repetitious work, take
caffeine during your low periods to smooth your energy out.

This is _incredible_ for your productivity, especially if you're doing
creative work that you can't brute force yourself to finish. Highly
recommended, almost should be mandatory for any anyone who consumes caffeine
and does creative work.

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tome
What about people like me who don't consume caffeine? Does it suggest that
we're missing out on something? Or is it just for those that do anyway to get
the most benefit?

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lionhearted
It's a piece on optimal caffeine usage - maybe worth a read for stroking your
intellectual curiosity if you're not a coffee/tea drinker, maybe there'd be a
related application to a similar part of life.

As for whether caffeine in general is worth it? I've got mixed feelings on it.
I spent a couple years of no caffeine from 2004 to 2006 or so, and I was
pretty effective then too. Caffeine helps when you're seriously burning
midnight oil on a deadline, less so otherwise, but there's probably lots of
literature around on the topic.

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ars
An opinion piece with references? Impressive.

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carbocation
"Several mental disorders, including bipolar disorder, can be rapidly
ameliorated by a resetting of the body clock."

What she conveniently fails to mention is that there is no evidence that this
works in the absence of pharmacologic measures. The reference for the actual
original research can be found at PMID 19358978.

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tokenadult
I have seen a different summary of (less recent) research in the second
edition of the Goodwin and Jamison textbook,

[http://www.amazon.com/Manic-Depressive-Illness-Disorders-
Rec...](http://www.amazon.com/Manic-Depressive-Illness-Disorders-Recurrent-
Depression/dp/0195135792/)

confirming that sleep deprivation itself (without medication) can alleviate
depression--but also precipitate mania in bipolar patients. Studies of brain
wave patterns during sleep and circadian rhythms of mood disorder patients are
numerous and are still suggesting treatment strategies, including choice of
particular pharmacologic measures for particular patients, an issue that needs
much more investigation.

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carbocation
Certainly. As an aside, if you are interested in this topic and get a chance
to catch a Jamison lecture, do it! She is a tremendous lecturer.

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imajes
Note that WakeMate (YC 09) is making use of this.... sorta. :D

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scotty79
Waking up in the morning is living against bodily clock in my case. I go to
sleep when I feel sleepy. I wake up when I have enough. My sleep time usually
somewhat overlaps with nighttime but I can occasionally skip a night by waking
later and later in subsequent days. I eat when I'm hungry. I should have
serious health problems by now according to any chronotherapist.

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carbocation
She is like the Malcolm Gladwell of biological science (typically, but not
always, with a sex-bio slant since that is her background).

What will be her Igon Value, I wonder? (Sincere question.)

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eob
Interesting read

