Study Finds Insomnia May Affect the Immune System
 (NY, Reuters Health, 4/18/03)

In a 3 week study, Dr. Josee Savard of the Universite Laval in Quebec, and team, compared 17 insomniacs with 19 people who slept normally -- all participants were physically healthy. The researchers did blood tests on the subjects and had them keep "sleep diaries" in which they recorded their sleep experiences, including when they fell asleep and when they awoke. The investigators found that the subjects who were sleep-deprived because of a pattern of insomnia had fewer CD3, CD4 and CD8 immune cells in their blood than those who slept well.