Rocking Improves Sleep and Memory in Adults

25 Jan 2019

Rocking isn’t just for babies anymore—it can soothe slumbering adults, too. Two papers in the January 24 Current Biology online suggest that a gentle, rhythmic sway throughout the night promotes sleep and memory. In the first study, scientists led by Laurence Bayer, University of Geneva, report that rocking lengthens and deepens sleep in people, enhancing brain oscillations and improving declarative memory. The second report by the same group of scientists, this time anchored by Paul Franken, University of Lausanne, Switzerland, explores the mechanism using mice. The authors found that rocking increased time spent in non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep, likely by stimulating the vestibular system.