Here’s some news to sleep on. If you don’t snooze, you’ll lose – some health benefits, that is. And if you do snooze, you’ll lose – at least when it comes to weight.
Just what is all this sleep-talk about?
Scientific research continues to uncover evidence that sleep has many health benefits. It’s long been known that a proper night’s sleep can boost a person’s mood, but new studies indicate that it is good for the heart, brain, and waistline, too.
With Americans sleeping, on average, only about 6.5 hours per night (instead of the recommended eight), this might seem like a tough sell. But the good news is that power naps can help.
In one long-term study of more than 23,000 people, scientists found that midday napping, or siestas, reduced deaths from heart disease by about one-third. Even occasional nappers – those who napped fewer than three times per week – had a 12 percent reduction in coronary mortality.
The protective effect of naps was especially strong in working men, the researchers determined.
“Taking a nap could turn out to be an important weapon in the fight against coronary mortality,” Dimitrios Trichopoulos, the study’s lead author, told the Washington Post. “If you have an opportunity to take a nap, then, yes, do it. If you’re accustomed to taking a nap, then don’t give it up.”