An online cognitive behavioral therapy program improved insomnia symptoms more than an educational website in a randomized trial of 311 adults aged 55 to 95. The differences remained at six and twelve months.
The study, published in npj Digital Medicine in July 2025, tested SHUTi OASIS, a program adapted for older adults. Participants received the program alone, the program with stepped support, or online sleep education. The treatment covered behavioral methods through six modules over a nine-week intervention period.
The treatment groups reported less severe insomnia and better results on several sleep measures than the education group. But total sleep time did not improve significantly more in the treatment groups. The benefit was not simply extra minutes in bed.
The participants were mostly white, college-educated and comfortable using the internet. People with certain medical conditions or other untreated sleep disorders were excluded. These limits matter when considering who might benefit outside the trial.
CBT-I addresses patterns involved in persistent insomnia. It is different from reading a list of tips or downloading an ordinary sleep tracker. The trial tested a particular program, not every app advertising better sleep.
For a hypothetical reader who has tried several products without success, a useful question at an appointment is whether CBT-I is appropriate and how to access it. That conversation can also address other causes of poor sleep and whether existing medicines need review.
Availability, price and coverage require a separate check; this article does not endorse a commercial subscription or establish access in a particular area. Nor does the result justify changing prescribed sleep medicine without advice.
The trial gives people another evidence-based option to discuss. Its strongest claim is a sustained improvement in insomnia symptoms for the people studied, not a guarantee that a program will work for every tired reader.
