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| {{Short description|Short period of sleep during typical waking hours}} | |||
| ⚫ | {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2019}} | ||
| {{Other uses}} | {{Other uses}} | ||
| {{pp-pc1}} | {{pp-pc1}} | ||
| ⚫ | {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2019}} | ||
| ] |
], on a ] in ]]] | ||
| A '''nap''' is a short period of sleep, typically taken during daytime hours as an adjunct to the usual nocturnal sleep period. Naps are most often taken as a response to ] during waking hours. A nap is a form of ], where the latter terms also include longer periods of sleep in addition to one single period. | |||
| A '''nap''' is a short period of ], typically taken during daytime hours as an adjunct to the usual nocturnal sleep period. Naps are most often taken as a response to ] during waking hours. A nap is a form of ], where the latter terms also include longer periods of sleep in addition to one period. For years, scientists have been investigating the benefits of napping, including the 30-minute nap as well as sleep durations of 1–2 hours. Performance across a wide range of cognitive processes has been tested.<ref name="pmid10607214">{{cite journal | vauthors = Rosekind MR, Smith RM, Miller DL, Co EL, Gregory , Webbon LL, Gander PH, Lebacqz JV | display-authors = 6 | title = Alertness management: strategic naps in operational settings | journal = Journal of Sleep Research | volume = 4 | issue = S2 | pages = 62–66 | date = December 1995 | pmid = 10607214 | doi = 10.1111/j.1365-2869.1995.tb00229.x | s2cid = 23583942 | doi-access = free }}</ref> | |||
| ==Benefits== | ==Benefits== | ||
| Sara Mednick conducted a study experimenting on the effects of napping, caffeine, and a placebo. Her results showed that a 60–90-minute nap is more effective than caffeine in memory and cognition.<ref name="pmid18554731">{{cite journal | vauthors = Mednick SC, Cai DJ, Kanady J, Drummond SP | title = Comparing the benefits of caffeine, naps and placebo on verbal, motor and perceptual memory | journal = Behavioural Brain Research | volume = 193 | issue = 1 | pages = 79–86 | date = November 2008 | pmid = 18554731 | pmc = 2603066 | doi = 10.1016/j.bbr.2008.04.028 }}</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | ===Power nap=== | ||
| For years, scientists have been investigating the benefits of napping, including the 30-minute nap as well as sleep durations of 1–2 hours. Performance across a wide range of cognitive processes has been tested.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://human-factors.arc.nasa.gov/zteam/fcp/pubs/jsr.art.html |title=NASA: Alertness Management: Strategic Naps in Operational Settings |date=1995 |accessdate=16 April 2012 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120419073208/http://human-factors.arc.nasa.gov/zteam/fcp/pubs/jsr.art.html |archivedate=19 April 2012 }}</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | {{Main|Power nap}} | ||
| A ], also known as a Stage 2 nap, is a short slumber of 20 minutes or less which terminates before the occurrence of deep ], intended to quickly revitalize the napper. The power nap is meant to maximize the benefits of sleep versus time. It is used to supplement normal sleep, especially when a sleeper has accumulated a ]. The greater the sleep deficit, the more effective the nap.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1987-07-01 |title=Temporal Placement of a Nap for Alertness: Contributions of Circadian Phase and Prior Wakefulness |journal=Sleep |doi=10.1093/sleep/10.4.313 |issn=1550-9109|doi-access=free }}</ref> | |||
| ===Prescribed napping for sleep disorders=== | ===Prescribed napping for sleep disorders=== | ||
| It has been shown that excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) can be improved by prescribed napping in narcolepsy.<ref name= |
It has been shown that ] (EDS) can be improved by prescribed napping in ].<ref name="Takahashi_2003">{{cite journal | vauthors = Takahashi M | title = The role of prescribed napping in sleep medicine | journal = Sleep Medicine Reviews | volume = 7 | issue = 3 | pages = 227–35 | date = June 2003 | pmid = 12927122 | doi = 10.1053/smrv.2002.0241 }}</ref> Apart from narcolepsy, it has not been demonstrated that naps are beneficial for EDS in other sleep disorders.<ref name="Takahashi_2003" /> | ||
| Apart from narcolepsy, it has not been demonstrated that naps are beneficial for EDS in other sleep disorders.<ref name=Takashi2003 /> | |||
| === Learning and memory === | |||
| ⚫ | ==Negative effects== | ||
| Research suggests that shorter, habitual naps after instruction offer the most benefits to learning.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Lemos N, Weissheimer J, Ribeiro S | title = Naps in school can enhance the duration of declarative memories learned by adolescents | journal = Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience | volume = 8 | pages = 103 | date = 2014-06-03 | pmid = 24917794 | doi = 10.3389/fnsys.2014.00103 | pmc = 4042263 | doi-access = free }}</ref><ref name=":0">{{cite journal | vauthors = Ji X, Li J, Liu J | title = The Relationship Between Midday Napping And Neurocognitive Function in Early Adolescents | journal = Behavioral Sleep Medicine | volume = 17 | issue = 5 | pages = 537–551 | date = February 2018 | pmid = 29388804 | doi = 10.1080/15402002.2018.1425868 | pmc = 6669094 }}</ref> The benefits to alertness show no change based on duration of the nap for combating ], even for naps as short as 10 minutes.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Takahashi M, Nakata A, Haratani T, Ogawa Y, Arito H | title = Post-lunch nap as a worksite intervention to promote alertness on the job | journal = Ergonomics | volume = 47 | issue = 9 | pages = 1003–1013 | date = July 2004 | pmid = 15204275 | doi = 10.1080/00140130410001686320 | s2cid = 37556310 }}</ref> Napping enhances alertness in young adults and adolescents during afternoons’ performances, which affect efficiency.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Takahashi M, Fukuda H, Arito H | title = Brief naps during post-lunch rest: effects on alertness, performance, and autonomic balance | journal = European Journal of Applied Physiology and Occupational Physiology | volume = 78 | issue = 2 | pages = 93–98 | date = July 1998 | pmid = 9694306 | doi = 10.1007/s004210050392 | s2cid = 2601267 }}</ref> Additionally, pre-teens who nap regularly during the day demonstrate better sleep at night. In younger children, napping increased drowsiness even while improving memory recall.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Tietzel AJ, Lack LC | title = The recuperative value of brief and ultra-brief naps on alertness and cognitive performance | journal = Journal of Sleep Research | volume = 11 | issue = 3 | pages = 213–218 | date = September 2002 | pmid = 12220317 | doi = 10.1046/j.1365-2869.2002.00299.x | s2cid = 22706866 }}</ref> | |||
| For students of all ages, napping during the school day showed benefits to reaction time and recall of ] of new information, especially if the naps remain in ], i.e. less than an hour in length.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Tucker MA, Hirota Y, Wamsley EJ, Lau H, Chaklader A, Fishbein W | title = A daytime nap containing solely non-REM sleep enhances declarative but not procedural memory | journal = Neurobiology of Learning and Memory | volume = 86 | issue = 2 | pages = 241–247 | date = September 2006 | pmid = 16647282 | doi = 10.1016/j.nlm.2006.03.005 | s2cid = 17606945 }}</ref><ref name=":0" /> | |||
| ⚫ | ===Sleep inertia=== | ||
| ⚫ | The state of grogginess, impaired cognition and disorientation experienced when awakening from sleep is known as sleep inertia.<ref>Dinges |
||
| === Cognitive capacity === | |||
| ===Association with health risks in the elderly=== | |||
| Epidemiological research has suggested napping as a risk factor for morbidity and mortality in elderly people.<ref>Hays, J. C., Blazer, D. G., Foley, D. J. (1996). Risk of napping: excessive daytime sleepiness and mortality in an older community population. J Am Geriatr Soc, 44: 693±698. doi:</ref> | |||
| In adults, a causal association has been found between habitual daytime napping and larger brain volume.<ref name="pmid37344293">{{cite journal | vauthors =Paz V, Dashti HS, Garfield V | title=Is there an association between daytime napping, cognitive function, and brain volume? A Mendelian randomization study in the UK Biobank | journal= ] | volume=9 | issue=5 | pages=786–793 | year=2023 | doi= 10.1016/j.sleh.2023.05.002| pmid=37344293}}</ref> Brain volume normally declines with age, and is associated with ].<ref name="pmid37344293" /> Earlier studies have shown benefits of napping for cognitive performance for healthy adults.<ref name="pmid37344293" /> | |||
| ⚫ | ===On sleep disorders=== | ||
| For those suffering from ] or ], naps may aggravate already disrupted sleep-wake patterns.<ref>http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=50785</ref> In a recent study, results suggested that napping had a negative impact on nocturnal sleep maintenance in insomnia patients but had no effect on control participants.<ref name=Jang2018>Jang, K. H., Lee, J. H., Kim, S. J., Kwon, H. J. (2018). Characteristics of napping in community-dwelling insomnia patients, Sleep Medicine, Volume 45, pp 49–54, ISSN 1389-9457. doi:</ref> However, there was no significant difference in timing and duration of the nap between the two groups.<ref name=Jang2018 /> | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| === Alertness and fatigue === | |||
| ⚫ | ==Power nap== | ||
| The ] plays a role in the rising demand for daytime naps: sleepiness rises towards the mid-afternoon, hence the best timing for naps is early afternoon.<ref>{{harvnb|Stampi|1992}}; Bertisch as cited in {{harvnb|Bilodeau|2021}}.</ref>{{Citation not found|date=January 2024}} Twenty- to thirty-minute naps are recommended for adults, while young children and elderly people may need longer naps.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=2009-11-01 |title=Napping May Not Be Such a No-No |url=https://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/napping-may-not-be-such-a-no-no |access-date=2023-02-18 |website=Harvard Health |language=en}}</ref><ref name = "Chan_1989">{{cite journal | vauthors = Chan OY, Phoon WH, Gan SL, Ngui SJ | title = Sleep-wake patterns and subjective sleep quality of day and night workers: interaction between napping and main sleep episodes | journal = Sleep | volume = 12 | issue = 5 | pages = 439–448 | date = October 1989 | pmid = 2799217 | doi = 10.1093/sleep/12.5.439 | doi-access = free }}</ref> Research, on the other hand, has shown that the benefits of napping depend on sleep onset and ]s rather than time and duration.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Jones BJ, Spencer RM | title = Role of Napping for Learning across the Lifespan | journal = Current Sleep Medicine Reports | volume = 6 | issue = 4 | pages = 290–297 | date = December 2020 | pmid = 33816064 | pmc = 8011550 | doi = 10.1007/s40675-020-00193-9 }}</ref> | |||
| {{Globalize|date=February 2019}} | |||
| ⚫ | {{Main|Power nap}} | ||
| A ], also known as a Stage 2 nap, is a short slumber of 20 minutes or less which terminates before the occurrence of deep ] (SWS), intended to quickly revitalize the napper. The expression "power nap" was coined by ] ] ].<ref name="Mednick">{{cite book |last=Mednick |first=Sara C. |author2=Mark Ehrman |title=Take a Nap! Change Your Life |year=2006 |edition=First |publisher=Workman Publishing |location=New York, NY, USA |isbn=978-0-7611-4290-4 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/takenapchangeyou00medn }}</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | ==Negative effects== | ||
| The 20-minute nap increases alertness and motor skills.<ref name="Mednick"/> Various durations may be recommended for power naps, which are very short compared to regular sleep. The short duration prevents nappers from sleeping so long that they enter the slow wave portion of the normal sleep cycle without being able to complete the cycle. Entering deep, slow-wave sleep and failing to complete the normal sleep cycle, can result in a phenomenon known as ], where one feels groggy, disoriented, and even sleepier than before beginning the nap. In order to attain optimal post-nap performance, a Stage 2 nap must be limited to the beginning of a sleep cycle, specifically ] N1 and N2, typically 18–25 minutes. | |||
| ⚫ | ===Sleep inertia=== | ||
| Experimental confirmation of the benefits of this brief nap comes from a Flinders University study in Australia in which 5, 10, 20, or 30-minute periods of sleep were given. The greatest immediate improvement in measures of alertness and cognitive performance came after the 10 minutes of sleep. The 20 and 30-minute periods of sleep showed evidence of sleep inertia immediately after the naps and improvements in alertness more than 30 minutes later but not to a greater level than after the 10 minutes of sleep.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Brooks |first=A |author2=Lack, L. |year=2006 |url=https://www.scopus.com/record/display.url?eid=2-s2.0-33745118693&origin=inward&txGid=350283ECD84BD6A56AA7FBA2A5F7C097.53bsOu7mi7A1NSY7fPJf1g%3a1 |title=A brief afternoon nap following nocturnal sleep restriction:which nap duration is most recuperative? |journal=Sleep |volume=29 |issue=6 |pages=831–840 |accessdate=18 April 2015|doi=10.1093/sleep/29.6.831 |pmid=16796222 }}</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | The state of grogginess, impaired cognition and disorientation experienced when awakening from sleep is known as sleep inertia.<ref>{{cite book | vauthors = Dinges DF | date = 1990 | chapter = Are you awake? Cognitive performance and reverie during the hypnopompic state. | veditors = Bootzin R, Kihlstrom J, Schacter D | title = Sleep and Cognition. | location = Washington, DC | publisher = American Psychological Society | pages = 159–175 | doi = 10.1037/10499-012 | isbn = 1-55798-083-7 }}</ref> This state reduces the speed of cognitive tasks but has no effects on the accuracy of task performance.<ref name="Takahashi_2003" /> The effects of sleep inertia rarely last longer than 30 minutes in the absence of prior sleep deprivation.<ref name="pmid12531174">{{cite journal | vauthors = Tassi P, Muzet A | title = Sleep inertia | journal = Sleep Medicine Reviews | volume = 4 | issue = 4 | pages = 341–353 | date = August 2000 | pmid = 12531174 | doi = 10.1053/smrv.2000.0098 }}</ref> | ||
| ===Potential health risks=== | |||
| People who regularly take these short naps, or catnaps, may develop a good idea of the duration which works best for them, as well as which tools, environment, position, and associated factors help produce the best results. Power naps are effective even when schedules allow a full night's sleep. Mitsuo Hayashi and Tadao Hori<ref>{{cite journal |title=The effects of a 20-min nap before post-lunch dip |journal=Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences |volume=52 |issue=2 |pages=203–204 |date=1 April 1998 |doi=10.1111/j.1440-1819.1998.tb01031.x |pmid=9628152 |last1=Hayashi |first1=Mitsuo |last2=Hori |first2=Tadao }}</ref> have demonstrated that a nap improves mental performance, even after a full night's sleep. | |||
| A 2016 ] showed that there may be a correlation between habitual napping for more than an hour, and having an increased risk for ], ], ] or death.<ref name="Yamada">{{cite journal | vauthors = Yamada T, Shojima N, Yamauchi T, Kadowaki T | title = J-curve relation between daytime nap duration and type 2 diabetes or metabolic syndrome: A dose-response meta-analysis | journal = Scientific Reports | volume = 6 | issue = 1 | pages = 38075 | date = December 2016 | pmid = 27909305 | pmc = 5133463 | doi = 10.1038/srep38075 }}</ref> There was no effect of napping for as long as 40 minutes per day, but a sharp increase in risk of disease occurred at longer nap times. No causal relationship was established: the link may be to do with people taking a longer nap in response to the pre-existence of other risk factors.<ref name=Yamada/> | |||
| Habitual naps are also an indicator of neurological degradation such as dementia in the elderly, as reduction in brain function causes more sleepiness.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Mantua J, Spencer RM | title = Exploring the nap paradox: are mid-day sleep bouts a friend or foe? | journal = Sleep Medicine | volume = 37 | pages = 88–97 | date = September 2017 | pmid = 28899546 | doi = 10.1016/j.sleep.2017.01.019 | pmc = 5598771 }}</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | ===On sleep disorders=== | ||
| ⚫ | For idiopathic ], patients typically experience sleep inertia and are unrefreshed after napping.<ref name="pmid9554226">{{cite journal | vauthors = Choo KL, Guilleminault C | title = Narcolepsy and idiopathic hypersomnolence | journal = Clinics in Chest Medicine | volume = 19 | issue = 1 | pages = 169–81 | date = March 1998 | pmid = 9554226 | doi = 10.1016/s0272-5231(05)70440-8 | doi-access = free }}</ref> | ||
| == |
== Best practices == | ||
| How long and when a person naps affects ] and ]: a person is more likely to benefit in terms of those two points when they sleep moderately in the afternoon. According to research, the degree to which a person experiences sleep inertia differs in different durations of nap. Because sleep inertia is possibly resulting from awakening from ], it is more likely to happen when one has a longer nap.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Milner CE, Cote KA | title = Benefits of napping in healthy adults: impact of nap length, time of day, age, and experience with napping | journal = Journal of Sleep Research | volume = 18 | issue = 2 | pages = 272–281 | date = June 2009 | pmid = 19645971 | doi = 10.1111/j.1365-2869.2008.00718.x | s2cid = 22815227 }}</ref> Sleep inertia is less intense after short naps.<ref>{{Cite journal | vauthors = Santos JS, Beijamini F, Louzada FM |date=2021-07-28 |title=Napping Behavior in Adolescents: Consensus, Dissents, and Recommendations |journal=Sleep and Vigilance |language=en |volume=5 |issue=2 |pages=189–196 |doi=10.1007/s41782-021-00155-3 |s2cid=237714078 |issn=2510-2265}}</ref> Sleep latency is shorter when a nap is taken between 3 and 5 pm, compared with a nap taken between 7 and 9 pm.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Shrivastava D, Jung S, Saadat M, Sirohi R, Crewson K | title = How to interpret the results of a sleep study | journal = Journal of Community Hospital Internal Medicine Perspectives | volume = 4 | issue = 5 | pages = 24983 | date = January 2014 | pmid = 25432643 | pmc = 4246141 | doi = 10.3402/jchimp.v4.24983 }}</ref> | |||
| A ] was investigated by British researchers. In a driving simulator and a series of studies, Horne and Reyner looked at the effects of cold air, radio, a break with no nap, a nap, caffeine pill vs. placebo and a short nap preceded by caffeine on mildly sleep-deprived subjects. The caffeine nap was by far the most effective in reducing driving "incidents" and subjective sleepiness. Caffeine in coffee takes up to a half-hour to have an alerting effect, hence "a short (<15min) nap will not be compromised if it is taken immediately after the coffee."<ref>{{cite journal |last=Horne |first= J.A. |author2=Reyner, L.A. |year=1996 |url=http://www.websciences.org/cftemplate/NAPS/archives/indiv.cfm?ID=19960113 |title=Driver sleepiness – "in-car" countermeasures: cold air and car radio |journal=Sleep Research |issue=25 |page=99 |format=Abstract |accessdate=9 February 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Horne |first=J.A. |author2=Reyner, L.A. |year=1995 |title=Driver sleepiness: practical countermeasures caffeine & nap |journal=Sleep Research |issue=24A |page=438 |url=http://www.websciences.org/cftemplate/NAPS/archives/indiv.cfm?ID=19979427 |format=Abstract |accessdate=9 February 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title= Loughborough University researchers issue new warning to tired drivers |url=http://www.lboro.ac.uk/service/publicity/news-releases/2004/04_110_micro-sleep.html |accessdate=23 September 2007}}</ref><ref></ref> | |||
| According to The Sleep Foundation, Psychology Today and Harvard Health Publishing, these are the best practices for napping:<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite web | vauthors = Andrews LW | date = 5 June 2010 |title=Ultimate Napping: A How-To Guide | work = Psychology Today |url=https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/minding-the-body/201006/ultimate-napping-how-guide |access-date=2023-02-18 |language=en}}</ref><ref name = "Chan_1989" /> | |||
| ==Systematic napping as a lifestyle== | |||
| * Setting up a sleep-friendly environment. | |||
| A contemporary idea called ]ing entails avoiding long periods of sleep, instead taking regularly spaced short naps. ], whose sleep research investigates the effects of napping, included a chapter, "Extreme Napping", in her book ''Take a Nap!''.<ref name="Mednick"/> In response to questions from readers about the "uberman" schedule of "polyphasic sleeping", she commented as follows: | |||
| * Understanding physical needs | |||
| {{quote|This practice rests upon one important hypothesis that our biological rhythms are adaptable. This means that we can train our internal mechanisms not only when to sleep and wake, but also when to get hungry, have the energy for exercise, perform mental activities. Inferred in this hypothesis is that we have the power to regulate our mood, metabolism, core body temperature, endocrine and stress response, basically everything inside this container of flesh we call home. Truly an Uberman feat!<ref>{{cite web |last=Mednick |first=Sara |url=http://www.saramednick.com/blog/?p=15 |title=Uberman, napping is all there is... |accessdate=23 March 2008 |date=11 May 2007 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071013103649/http://saramednick.com/blog/?p=15#more-15 |archivedate=13 October 2007 |url-status=dead }};</ref>}} | |||
| * Setting an alarm in order to prevent the negative impact of sleep inertia and sleep latency | |||
| == |
== See also == | ||
| * '']'' - a short nap in the early afternoon, often after the midday meal. | |||
| ⚫ | {{Reflist |
||
| == |
== References == | ||
| ⚫ | {{Reflist}} | ||
| *Naska, A., Oikonomou, E., Trichopoulou, A., Psaltopoulou, T. and Trichopoulos, D. (2007). "Siesta in healthy adults and coronary mortality in the general population". ''Archives of Internal Medicine'', 167, 296–301. | |||
| *MohammadReza Zaregarizi, Ben Edwards, Keith George, Yvonne Harrison, Helen Jones and Greg Atkinson. (2007). "Acute changes in cardiovascular function during the onset period of daytime sleep: Comparison to lying awake and standing". ''American J Appl Physiol'' 103:1332–1338. | |||
| *MohammadReza Zaregarizi. ''Effects of Exercise & Daytime Sleep on Human Haemodynamics: With Focus on Changes in Cardiovascular Function during Daytime Sleep Onset'', 2012. {{ISBN|978-3-8484-1726-1}}. | |||
| ==External links== | == External links == | ||
| {{Commons category|Napping}} | {{Commons category|Napping}} | ||
| * |
* {{cite web | url = https://archive.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/naps/ | title = How to nap | work = Sunday Ideas section | publisher = ] | date = 14 June 2008 | access-date = 16 June 2009 }} | ||
| * |
* {{cite web | url = https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2009/jan/27/napping-guide-health-wellbeing | title = Napping: the expert's guide | work = ] | date = 27 January 2009 | access-date = 16 June 2009 }} | ||
| {{SleepSeries2}} | {{SleepSeries2}} | ||
| {{Authority control}} | |||
| ] | ] | ||
Latest revision as of 14:38, 5 January 2025
Short period of sleep during typical waking hours For other uses, see Nap (disambiguation).
A nap is a short period of sleep, typically taken during daytime hours as an adjunct to the usual nocturnal sleep period. Naps are most often taken as a response to drowsiness during waking hours. A nap is a form of biphasic or polyphasic sleep, where the latter terms also include longer periods of sleep in addition to one period. For years, scientists have been investigating the benefits of napping, including the 30-minute nap as well as sleep durations of 1–2 hours. Performance across a wide range of cognitive processes has been tested.
Benefits
Sara Mednick conducted a study experimenting on the effects of napping, caffeine, and a placebo. Her results showed that a 60–90-minute nap is more effective than caffeine in memory and cognition.
Power nap
Main article: Power napA power nap, also known as a Stage 2 nap, is a short slumber of 20 minutes or less which terminates before the occurrence of deep slow-wave sleep, intended to quickly revitalize the napper. The power nap is meant to maximize the benefits of sleep versus time. It is used to supplement normal sleep, especially when a sleeper has accumulated a sleep deficit. The greater the sleep deficit, the more effective the nap.
Prescribed napping for sleep disorders
It has been shown that excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) can be improved by prescribed napping in narcolepsy. Apart from narcolepsy, it has not been demonstrated that naps are beneficial for EDS in other sleep disorders.
Learning and memory
Research suggests that shorter, habitual naps after instruction offer the most benefits to learning. The benefits to alertness show no change based on duration of the nap for combating post-lunch dip, even for naps as short as 10 minutes. Napping enhances alertness in young adults and adolescents during afternoons’ performances, which affect efficiency. Additionally, pre-teens who nap regularly during the day demonstrate better sleep at night. In younger children, napping increased drowsiness even while improving memory recall.
For students of all ages, napping during the school day showed benefits to reaction time and recall of declarative memory of new information, especially if the naps remain in slow-wave sleep, i.e. less than an hour in length.
Cognitive capacity
In adults, a causal association has been found between habitual daytime napping and larger brain volume. Brain volume normally declines with age, and is associated with neurodegenerative disease. Earlier studies have shown benefits of napping for cognitive performance for healthy adults.
Alertness and fatigue
The circadian cycle plays a role in the rising demand for daytime naps: sleepiness rises towards the mid-afternoon, hence the best timing for naps is early afternoon. Twenty- to thirty-minute naps are recommended for adults, while young children and elderly people may need longer naps. Research, on the other hand, has shown that the benefits of napping depend on sleep onset and sleep phases rather than time and duration.
Negative effects
Sleep inertia
The state of grogginess, impaired cognition and disorientation experienced when awakening from sleep is known as sleep inertia. This state reduces the speed of cognitive tasks but has no effects on the accuracy of task performance. The effects of sleep inertia rarely last longer than 30 minutes in the absence of prior sleep deprivation.
Potential health risks
A 2016 meta-analysis showed that there may be a correlation between habitual napping for more than an hour, and having an increased risk for cardiovascular disease, diabetes, metabolic syndrome or death. There was no effect of napping for as long as 40 minutes per day, but a sharp increase in risk of disease occurred at longer nap times. No causal relationship was established: the link may be to do with people taking a longer nap in response to the pre-existence of other risk factors.
Habitual naps are also an indicator of neurological degradation such as dementia in the elderly, as reduction in brain function causes more sleepiness.
On sleep disorders
For idiopathic hypersomnia, patients typically experience sleep inertia and are unrefreshed after napping.
Best practices
How long and when a person naps affects sleep inertia and sleep latency: a person is more likely to benefit in terms of those two points when they sleep moderately in the afternoon. According to research, the degree to which a person experiences sleep inertia differs in different durations of nap. Because sleep inertia is possibly resulting from awakening from slow-wave sleep, it is more likely to happen when one has a longer nap. Sleep inertia is less intense after short naps. Sleep latency is shorter when a nap is taken between 3 and 5 pm, compared with a nap taken between 7 and 9 pm.
According to The Sleep Foundation, Psychology Today and Harvard Health Publishing, these are the best practices for napping:
- Setting up a sleep-friendly environment.
- Understanding physical needs
- Setting an alarm in order to prevent the negative impact of sleep inertia and sleep latency
See also
- Siesta - a short nap in the early afternoon, often after the midday meal.
References
- Rosekind MR, Smith RM, Miller DL, Co EL, Gregory, Webbon LL, et al. (December 1995). "Alertness management: strategic naps in operational settings". Journal of Sleep Research. 4 (S2): 62–66. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2869.1995.tb00229.x. PMID 10607214. S2CID 23583942.
- Mednick SC, Cai DJ, Kanady J, Drummond SP (November 2008). "Comparing the benefits of caffeine, naps and placebo on verbal, motor and perceptual memory". Behavioural Brain Research. 193 (1): 79–86. doi:10.1016/j.bbr.2008.04.028. PMC 2603066. PMID 18554731.
- "Temporal Placement of a Nap for Alertness: Contributions of Circadian Phase and Prior Wakefulness". Sleep. 1 July 1987. doi:10.1093/sleep/10.4.313. ISSN 1550-9109.
- ^ Takahashi M (June 2003). "The role of prescribed napping in sleep medicine". Sleep Medicine Reviews. 7 (3): 227–35. doi:10.1053/smrv.2002.0241. PMID 12927122.
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External links
- "How to nap". Sunday Ideas section. The Boston Globe. 14 June 2008. Retrieved 16 June 2009.
- "Napping: the expert's guide". The Guardian. 27 January 2009. Retrieved 16 June 2009.