> "When using a weighted blanket, the 1 hour increase of salivary melatonin from baseline (i.e., 22:00) to lights off (i.e., 23:00) was about 32% higher (p = 0.011). No other significant differences were found between the blanket conditions, including subjective sleepiness and total sleep duration."
The authors are also aware of the limited scope of their inquiry:
> "Future studies should investigate whether the stimulatory effect on melatonin secretion is observed on a nightly basis when frequently using a weighted blanket over weeks to months. It remains to be determined whether the observed increase in melatonin may be therapeutically relevant for the previously described effects of the weighted blanket on insomnia and anxiety."
I bought a weighted blanket just to test if there were any possible benefits for myself. I do prefer it, but do not need it. The same goes for a bidet.
My advice? Keep testing things...
I experimented a lot with different sleep gadgets. Weighted blankets felt suffocating, especially in Summer. What really worked at the end is just 2 large pillows (20x40in) that I put on either side of me under the blanket. The most satisfying and cozy experience, improved my sleep quality.
I really liked how it felt but there was like a 50% chance of me getting sleep paralysis and feeling extreme terror, so my weighted blanket experiment only lasted a week.
That's quite a misleading characterization. There were twelve authors, and only one works for Cura.[1] The others are mostly researchers at Uppsala University, and the article notes that "none of the remaining authors declare any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest, nor were they paid by Cura of Sweden for conducting the present experiment."
The research was funded by the Swedish Brain Research Foundation and the Novo Nordisk Foundation.
[1] And they're the eighth author in a non-alphabetized list, so probably a minor contributor and not the principal investigator.
Yes... that is why it is explicitly listed under conflicts of interest. For better or for worse, there isn't unlimited free capital to study things without vested interest.
We should hope that despite influence, good scientists prioritize the scientific method over lying or intentionally misleading for personal gain. Of course, history has shown this is too much to ask of many people :)
I disagree, if you have a vested interested you're likely to cheat, not every kind of cheating is visible in a paper.
If you e.g. pump out 100 studies and then make a perfect reasoning on the 1 study which had significant results in your favor, then what you did wrong can't be seen in the one paper you published.
As long as the studies aren't preregistered, you have to discount those with vested interests.
11 other authors with no financial ties. The conflict of interest was expressed up front. The authors appear to be very aware of the limits of the study, including noting that they see no difference in subjective sleepiness, nor do they attempt to make any claims that the result will hold over long term use.
Frankly - The parent is right. This is a lazy fucking argument.
But you don't have to walk your blanket.