by IAN <\/strong>TAYLOR <\/strong><\/p>\n\n Keep this to yourself but I am, quite literally, sleeping on the job. I\u2019m sitting on my desk chair and should be writing this article that you\u2019re reading, but my eyes are closed and my forearms are relaxed on the arm rests, palms facing up. There\u2019s an apple in my left hand (I\u2019ll explain why in a second).<\/span><\/p>\n\n It\u2019s a peculiar scene, I\u2019ll grant you, but not one of abject laziness, whatever my wife tells you. I\u2019m napping in the name of science, art and productivity.<\/span><\/p>\n\n Some of history\u2019s greatest thinkers swore by the idea of a power nap, and scientific literature is beginning to suggest they were right to. <\/p>\n\n In recent years, researchers have found that a short doze can improve everything from memory and creativity to cardiovascular health and immune function. Napping is a superpower, it would seem, capable of restoring body and mind. Some have even described it as a public health intervention waiting to happen \u2013 not least because we\u2019re all so very tired. <\/p>\n\n As we know, adults need seven to nine hours of sleep a night. And as we also know, we\u2019re not getting it. Screen time, stress, caffeine habits and shift work are all to blame, but according to a YouGov poll earlier this year, one in eight Brits gets less than six hours of shuteye a night and a quarter of us use sleeping pills. Plus, if you believe marketing surveys from mattress companies, we build up more than 30 hours of sleep debt a month.<\/span><\/p>\n\n In turn, the British economy loses \u00a330bn a year because of sleep loss. More importantly, chronic sleep disorders can increase a person\u2019s risk of high blood pressure and heart problems, as well as immune system dysfunction and obesity. No wonder sleep has become an obsession, something we track, hack and optimise. <\/p>\n\n \u201cMICRO NAPS CAN ENERGISE YOUR MIND, IMPROVE ALERTNESS AND SUPERCHARGE YOUR CREATIVITY\u201d <\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n Which brings me back to my desk chair experiment, and that apple I\u2019m holding. Here\u2019s the theory, posited by Thomas Edison no less and tested recently by researchers at the Paris Brain Institute: micro naps have the power to energise your mind, improve your alertness and supercharge your creativity \u2013 but it\u2019s got to be quick, otherwise you slip into the wrong phase of sleep and wake up groggy instead. <\/p>\n\n It takes a while but I eventually begin to doze off, apple in hand, thoughts and images dancing about my subconscious. Then as the lights go out and I fully lose consciousness, the apple falls from my hand, waking me up with a jolt. It\u2019s a weird feeling, but it works, I think. I soon feel more alert than I did before the nap and more lucid; the words come a little more freely. <\/p>\n\n Mostly the same things that happen when you sleep at night, just in a single cycle (usually) and over a shorter period of time. First you doze in that hinterland between wakefulness and sleep, which usually lasts around five minutes. Then, as you lose consciousness, you enter stage 2 sleep where your breathing slows, your muscles relax and your core body temperature falls. Brain activity slows down, too. <\/p>\n\n \u201cStage 2 sleep is really great for alertness and that pushing-the-reset-button kind of power nap,\u201d says Prof Sara Mednick, a sleep researcher at the University of California, Irvine. Some 10 to 25 minutes later, deep sleep (stage 3) begins, characterised by a particular type of brain activity called delta waves. Researchers believe this stage of sleep, which can last up to 40 minutes, is vital recovery time for the body: a biological restoration during which your immune system and other bodily systems get a kind of MOT, and your memories are consolidated.<\/span><\/p>\n\n Lastly there is stage 4 or REM sleep. At this point, you\u2019re 60 to 90 minutes into your siesta. This is the point when dreams will be most vivid and your body will enter a sort of paralysis with muscles freezing up. The exception is your eyes, which move quickly beneath the eyelids. \u201cRapid eye movement (or REM) sleep is good for creativity and perceptual processing and also semantic associations,\u201d says Mednick, author of The <\/em>Power <\/em>Of <\/em>The <\/em>Downstate. <\/em>\u201cYou learn new information and encode it and memorise it in slow-wave sleep, but you then integrate that new information into your semantic network during REM.\u201d <\/p>\n\n The reason most of us want to grab a nap is not to hack our creativity so we can write a symphony before 5pm. Mostly, we\u2019re just exhausted. Does a nap genuinely let you \u2018catch up\u2019 on sleep lost to late nights, insomnia or teething babies? Absolutely, says neuroscientist Dr Brice Faraut, author of Saved <\/em>By <\/em>The <\/em>Siesta. <\/em><\/p>\n\n \u201cThe power of the siesta lies precisely in its capacity to produce certain effects of a night-time sleep, but in record time,\u201d he says. <\/p>\n\n Sleep is sleep, is the point. It doesn\u2019t really matter if you only grab five hours at night, if you make up for it with another two after lunch. You\u2019re still putting the time in. One full sleep cycle lasts around 90 minutes, during which time your body passes through every stage of sleep and all the effects that come with them. <\/p>\n\n If you wake up from stage 2 sleep, you will likely feel more alert and less fatigued but, says neurologist Prof Guy Leschziner, it\u2019s the deeper sleep cycles that are truly restorative on a physiological level. \u201cWe think it\u2019s the deep sleep, the slow-wave sleep, that is the most important in terms of restoration of function and its impact on blood pressure and various other things,\u201d says Leschziner, author of The <\/em>Nocturnal <\/em>Brain. <\/em>\u201cSo in deep sleep, channels in the brain called the glymphatic system open up and there is an increased removal of metabolites or chemicals from the brain that have been built up during waking hours.\u201d <\/p>\n\n One thing: don\u2019t nap for too long or too late in the day because it will likely impact your night-time sleep. It might satisfy your homeostatic drive, which is your body\u2019s internal need or pressure for sleep, but \u201cif you take a long nap in the late afternoon, it\u2019s highly likely that you\u2019ll have a harder time getting sleep at night.\u201d <\/p>\n\n If you believe the likes of Thomas Edison, Albert Einstein and Salvador Dali, naps absolutely make you more creative. Many famous scientists and artists have relied on naps to sharpen their minds, solve problems or generate ideas. And modern research validates them, with papers showing improvements in a range of cognitive skills from creativity to motor learning after a nap. <\/p>\n\n Inspired by Edison\u2019s method of micronapping described at the beginning of the article, Dr Delphine Oudiette of the Paris Brain Institute devised a study to test it. She presented study participants with a mathematical problem and, if they couldn\u2019t solve it, they were asked to recline on a chair and rest. After the break, those people who drifted into stage 1 sleep \u2013 that hazy, half-awake state before the shutters come down \u2013 were three times more likely to solve the problem than people who didn\u2019t nap. \u201cIt seems we have a creative switch there when you doze,\u201d Oudiette says. <\/p>\n\n Other areas of cognition seem better served by other phases of sleep. Attention and alertness come from stage 2 sleep. <\/p>\n\n \u201cAnd we need slow-wave sleep [stage 3] to improve memory,\u201d says Oudiette. \u201cYou need at least 40 minutes to get a good amount of slow-wave sleep \u2013 but that also increases the chance of sleep inertia and feeling groggy.\u201d <\/p>\n\n She says there\u2019s also evidence to suggest that naps can help with emotional response (something that toddlers\u2019 parents may verify). \u201cShort sleep may help us digest and regulate our emotions. So if you get an angry email, it might be a good idea to take a nap before you respond.\u201d <\/p>\n\n \u201cAll of our rhythms, sleep included, are due to evolution, due to living on a planet that has a Sun and a Moon. And all animals and plants and bacteria have these cycles of rest and activity,\u201d says Mednick. Some of the processes that underpin our need for sleep, such as circadian rhythms and homeostatic drive, are thought to have evolutionary roots. \u201cAll animals outside of humans are nappers,\u201d Mednick adds. \u201cIt\u2019s almost like, you know, the nappers are the ones that are more naturalistic and the non-nappers somehow have evolved out of napping.\u201d Culture plays a part, too. Siestas are an ingrained part of the Mediterranean lifestyle. <\/span>In China, it\u2019s normal for people to take naps in high school or during the working day. <\/span>When Mednick studied the napping habits of secondary-age pupils in China, she found that those who don\u2019t nap were more likely to have lower academic performance and misconduct. \u201cIt\u2019s an interesting thought that where napping is a culturally embedded practice, nappers do better.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n It\u2019s hard to overstate the importance of sleep for healthy functioning of your body and mind. \u201cThe consequences of non-optimal sleep reverberate over time,\u201d says Faraut. \u201cOn a short timescale of a few days, it decreases several aspects of cognition, reducing attention, memory formation and the ability to generate ideas. If sleep quality remains poor for an extended period of time, the consequences spread further beyond cognitive functions into the realm of physiology, such as metabolism, neuroendocrine stress, immune and inflammatory systems.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n Research has often linked poor sleep to a higher risk of heart disease, obesity and other conditions. It also increases the dangers of co-morbidities like high blood pressure or diabetes, with a number of meta studies showing a link between poor sleep and the risk of an early death. <\/p>\n\n If naps improve your overall sleep, they have the potential to counteract all of the above. \u201cStudies conducted all over the world show that napping is an adjustable, all-purpose remedy for sleep deficit, a \u2018medicine\u2019 for the future, many of whose virtues are now known to us,\u201d says Brice. <\/p>\n\n \u201cA nap provides all the benefits to be had from the physiological functions of a night\u2019s sleep, only on a smaller scale. There is growing scientific evidence that napping not only boosts alertness and cognitive performance, but also reduces the activity of the stress systems and normalises the immune dysfunctions reported as a risk of sleep debt.\u201d <\/p>\n\n So the next time your boss asks why you fell asleep in the mid-afternoon meeting, remember: you\u2019re not just resting your eyes; you\u2019re giving your entire body a science-backed reset. <\/p>\n\n Some people don\u2019t wake up from a nap feeling restored, they feel drugged. They\u2019re lethargic, they can\u2019t focus and various cognitive abilities are impaired. The feeling is known as \u2018sleep inertia\u2019, describing the zombie-like state between sleep and wakefulness. <\/p>\n\n If you wake from a nap feeling like that, it could be one of two things: bad timing or possibly bad genes. <\/p>\n\n For most people, waking up from deep sleep (stage 3) is harder. This may be something to do with the delta waves that characterise your brain activity at this stage, or it could be something to do with lower blood flow around your body. One way to counteract this when you\u2019re napping is to set an alarm that goes off not during stage 3, but stage 2: around 20 to 30 minutes after you drop off. This means less sleep, but more energy on waking. <\/p>\n\n It\u2019s also possible that you\u2019re just not a napper. \u201cWe tried to train non-nappers to gain benefits from a nap and found that over a month of nap training there was zero change,\u201d says Mednick. \u201cThey didn\u2019t gain any cognitive benefits and their sleep didn\u2019t change. <\/p>\n\n So there could be something fundamentally different between nappers and non-nappers.\u201d <\/p>\n\n Mednick believes that just as people can have what\u2019s known as different chronotypes \u2013 being a morning person or an evening person \u2013 it may be that we\u2019re split into nappers and non-nappers. \u201cIt seems that there is something biological going on, but we need more research on that.\u201d <\/p>\n\n Potentially. It\u2019s not fully understood, but it seems you can have too much of a good thing. For all the benefits of some strategic shuteye, there are also a number of studies that have shown a link between naps and poor health, especially in older adults. <\/p>\n\n In 2020, a study presented at the European Society of Cardiology examined data from 20 papers. It found that people who often napped for more than an hour had a 30 per cent higher risk of (all-cause) death and a 34 per cent higher risk of cardiovascular disease compared to non-nappers. <\/p>\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/Siesta-Reworking-smaller-cactus.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\nWHAT HAPPENS TO YOUR BODY DURING A NAP? <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/91aa513d-3c7e-4108-9fc0-a3a652feb0fd.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\nCAN NAPPING MAKE UP FOR LOST SLEEP? <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/f03c6a5c-e26e-4156-94ab-6a9dcdf87dbe.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\nCAN NAPPING MAKE YOU MORE CREATIVE? <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/18d145da-63a6-490e-a80a-60d2d7bff663.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\nIS THERE AN EVOLUTIONARY EXPLANATION FOR NAPS? <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
HOW CAN A NAP IMPROVE YOUR HEALTH? <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/119e1798-d7f6-4022-9899-74f095e70937.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\nWHY DO SOME PEOPLE FEEL WORSE AFTER A NAP? <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/c894da33-ef42-4ac3-8dcb-a55b4d23a1ed.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\nCAN TOO MUCH NAPPING BE A PROBLEM? <\/strong><\/h4>\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/bdbaa2cb-954d-4298-8844-09338a7460b2.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/33c50ee1-cba9-4a09-a453-6f4430f1c4f2.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/e52c719d-a8de-4bb0-8f58-ad22a2ad3bd6.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/ed6f7fb7-8bf6-459e-8d39-eb636afcfea0.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/e3245895-f12b-449b-9d6e-cdcebca12f33.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/42\/2022\/08\/233faa71-ff48-466f-a72e-9b16382b95ef.jpg\")
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n