ABSTRACT

Virtually any drug that crosses the blood-brain barrier can potentially affect sleep-wake function. Alcohol, a small, water-soluble molecule, is quickly distributed throughout the body and readily crosses the bloodbrain barrier. Its effects on sleep have been extensively studied since the early experiments of Nathaniel Kleitman. In his 1939 book Sleep and Wakefulness, Kleitman described the effects that alcohol administered 60 minutes before bedtime had on body temperature and motility during the sleep of healthy normals.1