Helping patients stay healthy: A growing number of mobile apps and gadgets aim to help people stay active, sleep well and eat healthy.

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And she suspects the fresh air and active play help both kids sleep better.

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"Everything we already know about fighting off chronic disease, like getting sufficient sleep, staying active throughout life, and having a healthy diet" may stave off premature aging of the immune system, too, Epel said.

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It was not active in those who had been sleep deprived.

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Royal Castle Child Development Center offers an arts-based health curriculum called Eat Sleep Play that is designed to teach children, parents and caregivers how to eat healthy, get the right amount of sleep and lead an active lifestyle.

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Some nonmedical options to try include staying hydrated, exercising or being active during the time you are supposed to be awake, and getting enough overall sleep before, during and after travel if possible.

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"If kids are getting adequate sleep, they're going to have more energy during the day to be physically active, " says Dalton, who has researched the link between families and obesity but was not involved in the current study.

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However, Kimberley Thacker, vice president at Sanofi, emphasizes that the active ingredient in Ambien and Ambien CR has been around for years and that the drug has helped patients sleep through a combined 14 billion nights in a real-world setting.

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You can also set the hours in which this is active, so that the Up doesn't wake you every 30 minutes while you're trying to sleep.

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