How Napping Benefits Your Brain To Function at Optimum Level

When you’re tired and exhausted, your body sends some signals telling to get some sleep especially if you’re the type that doesn’t sleep enough. If you disregard these signals, you might begin to feel some pains all over your body or get sick quite often. Eating and exercise regularly without sufficient sleep can compromise your health.

Daytime naps can be one way to treat sleep deprivation, says Sara C. Mednick, PhD, sleep expert and author of Take a Nap! Change Your Life.  She said “You can get incredible benefits from 15 to 20 minutes of napping,”. “You reset the system and get a burst of alertness and increased motor performance. That’s what most people really need to stave off sleepiness and get an energy boost.”

The length of your nap and the type of sleep you get help determine the brain-boosting benefits. The 20-minute power nap, sometimes called the stage 2 nap – is good for alertness and motor learning skills like typing and playing the piano.

What happens if you nap for more than 20 minutes?

In recent research, it shows that the longer naps help boost memory and enhance creativity. Slow-wave sleep-napping for approximately 30 to 60 minutes is good for decision-making skills, such as recalling directions and memorizing vocabulary.

The latest studies have proven that daytime naps have the power to improve overall brain functioning. Scientists say that naps convert short-term memories into long-term ones, thereby clearing the part of your brain that temporarily stores information, so there is room for new stuff.

Health benefits of Daytime Napping

1. Napping Prevents Premature Aging

It’s the reason napping is called “beauty sleep.” Sleeping stimulates growth hormones that renew old cells and thus, rejuvenates the skin.

2. Improves Performance

A study showed that daytime naps boost both mental and physical activity. Napping helps you recover after a hard workout and also leads to better athletic performance. According to researchers, the ideal nap should last for 20-40 minutes.

3. Napping Stimulates Cell Repair

The human body restores itself during sleep. It produces protein that repairs damage caused stress and toxins. Napping stimulates growth hormone production, which are responsible for tissue and muscular repair.

4. Improves Memory

Napping improves brain function has proven as noted by Sara C. Mednick, PhD. Other researchers say that napping converts short-term memories into long-term ones, making way for new information to be gathered.

5. Napping Helps You Lose Weight

Insufficient sleep affects leptin and ghrelin. These hormones are responsible for your appetite, and any imbalance will make you eat more. Daytime napping helps to balance the production of these hormones.

Don’t be shy to take a quick nap anytime anywhere, people might laugh at you sleeping in the day time or on your break at work, your brain will be better for it!