A study released in the U.S. suggests taking a short daytime nap following a restless night will not help with sleep deprivation. The study was performed by researchers out of Michigan State University’s Sleep and Learning Lab. It found that naps between 30 and 60-minutes are ineffective at relieving the symptoms of sleep deprivation.
The findings were published in the peer-reviewed scientific and medical journal Sleep on Thursday. It involved 275 college-aged participants who had to complete cognitive tasks at MSU’s labs in the night before going to bed. The tasks measured attention and place keeping, an example is to complete a series of steps in a specific order without skipping or repeating them, even when interrupted.
Participants were randomly assigned into three groups, the first group was sent home to sleep, the second stayed at the lab overnight and had the ability to take either a 30 or 60-minute nap. The final group did not nap at all in the deprivation condition, according to the researchers. The next morning, all of the participants returned to the lab and repeated the cognitive tasks performed the night prior.
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