As a researcher, I have reported on the benefits of napping for cognition, showing that naps can enhance visual, motor and spatial skills to the same extent as a full night of sleep in some cases. But a resolution to the question of nap's health benefits has been long awaited.
Recently, this question was addressed by an epidemiological study from the Harvard School of Public Health and the University of Athens Medical School on over 23,000 Greek adults, which appears in Archives of Internal Medicine. The researchers followed subjects over six years and measured their diet, physical activity and whether they napped (1) never, (2) occasionally (once or twice a week, for less than 30 minutes, and usually on weekends), or (3) frequently (three or more times a week, for 30 minutes or more).
They found that occasional napping decreased a person's risk for coronary heart disease by 12 percent, but that regular napping decreased risk by a whopping 37 percent. Inspired by the observation that siesta cultures have decreased rates of heart disease, previous studies investigating this relationship found mixed results. For example, a Costa Rican study examined about 1,000 people and reported that frequent napping increased the risk of heart disease.
The power of the present study is its sheer magnitude, which allowed the researchers to perform the correct controls, such as excluding people with pre-existing illnesses. In studies of sleep, it is essential to avoid confounding the question of whether sleep makes you healthy with the fact that unhealthy people need more sleep.
The Greek study appropriately examined healthy adults and found that frequent siestas may be a secret ounce of prevention – a thinly veiled apple a day. Sara Mednick, Nap time: How a little sleep can change your life, San Diego Union-Tribune, February 22, 2007 http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20070222/news_lz1e22mednick.htmlLinkback:
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