Abstract
AS normal blinking is involuntary, it might be expected that blinking would proceed at its normal or at a somewhat reduced rate during sleep, as with breathing and the heart-beat. This is not so, however, though little seems to have been published on the subject, especially on the quantitative side. Whereas many of the muscles are relaxed during sleep, “the muscular tone of the muscles which keep the eyes closed is undoubtedly increased”. Duke-Elder1 states that the occurrence of bilateral blinking movements “may be used as a test for the simulation of sleep”.
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References
“Text-Book of Ophthalmology”, 1, 644 (Henry Kimpton, London, W.C.1, 1942).
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LAWSON, R. Blinking and Sleep. Nature 165, 81–82 (1950). https://doi.org/10.1038/165081b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/165081b0
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