Does an adult need a nap? Is naps good for the elderly

For children preschool age daytime sleep is a time when they can rest and gain strength. After it, the kids feel vigorous, ready to re-learn the world around them.

But with age, the habit of resting during the day disappears. Many adults who are going to take a nap at lunchtime are considered lazy and slovenly. Is it correct?

The benefits of sleeping in the middle of the day

Is naps good for you? Scientists who have conducted various studies at the state level assure that naping during the working day is very beneficial.

In some countries, for example, in Spain, Italy, Japan, China, daytime sleep is officially allowed. What are its advantages:

• The person completely relaxes, gains new strength.
• After the rest you feel cheerful, able to work productively, put forward new "fresh" ideas.
• The nervous system is strengthened, people feel less irritable.
• Resistance to various stressful situations... That is why, in Spain and China, important negotiations are scheduled for the afternoon, when workers have already taken a nap.
• The experiments carried out prove that after a nap, a person's senses become aggravated. This is especially important for perfumers, tasters, confectioners, people whose profession is related to smell and touch.
• The metabolism is activated. Thanks to this, digestion is normalized.
• Immunity is strengthened. It has been scientifically proven that people who rest during the day are less likely to get sick, they do not have chronic ailments.
• The emotional background is leveled.
• Signs of overwork disappear.

How long should you sleep during the day? Optimal time 20-30 minutes. If the night's rest was short, you can increase the time to an hour.

No more naps during the day. Otherwise, the person will feel overwhelmed, headaches will appear.

It is best to doze during the day, and not fall into deep sleep. Experts compare this state to hypnosis or meditation. At the same time, it is important that the person is comfortable and comfortable. For example, in China, workers during the daytime sleep prefer to rest on the asphalt, placing a cardboard under their heads.

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Such a state will not contribute to relaxation, on the contrary, the person will feel "overwhelmed" and tired.

The harm of rest during the day

In some cases, sleeping during the daytime can seriously harm a person. Let's consider several reasons:

1. Prolonged nap. You can hear from many people that after a day's sleep they feel unwell and often experience headaches. With what it can be connected? Most likely, the person simply miscalculated the time. Do not doze for more than 30 minutes during the day. Otherwise, the body does not understand why early awakening occurs. A person experiences weakness, loss of strength, nausea, dizziness.
2. Replacing night sleep with daytime sleep. If a person is used to working at night, then he tries to replenish the lost strength during the day. At first, the body may react to this normally, but over time you will definitely feel unwell and tired. Experts say with confidence that nighttime and daytime sleep has different phases, so it's not worth replacing one with another.
3. Diabetes. Daytime nap contributes to a sharp jump in hormonal levels. If you have an increased amount of glucose in your blood, it can lead to a diabetic coma.
4. Hypertension. If the bum suffers high blood pressure, then daytime sleep is not always good for him. This is due to the fact that the pressure can change dramatically, a cerebral hemorrhage occurs, causing a heart attack or stroke.

1. Insomnia. Are you suffering from a similar ailment? Then it's better to forget about taking a nap during the day.

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How to relax during the day correctly

To feel good after a nap, you need to know how to properly indulge in naps. These tips will help you feel good:

1. Try to keep your sleep short. The optimal duration is 20-25 minutes. Why exactly these numbers? It's all about the phases of sleep. In 20 minutes, the body can relax, the brain centers rest, the body is filled with strength. After 30 minutes, the deep sleep phase begins, which lasts at least an hour. If you wake up at this time, then the person will definitely feel "overwhelmed" and tired. In this case, it is better to sleep for 1.5-2 hours.
2. Also, do not forget about the right environment. Eliminate sources of music and glare. It is ideal to wear a special bandage over your eyes that does not let the sun go through, and insert earplugs into your ears.
3. The sleeping area should promote relaxation. The bed will be successfully replaced by a comfortable taffeta, an armchair, a sofa, even a folded seat in the car.
4. Try to nap between 1 and 3 p.m. Otherwise, you may face the problem of nocturnal insomnia.
5. If you cannot sleep for a long time, consider these features of the body. Start planning your naps well in advance.

After taking a nap, have a strong cup of tea or coffee. Be sure to do a little exercise. This will help your body to tone up quickly.

Cases when you need to give up daytime sleep

There are adults who cannot sleep during the day. Thus, the body makes it clear that they simply do not need it.

Consider situations when it is better to refuse from daytime rest:

1. There is no need for it. If you don't want to doze, it's better not to try. Otherwise, this may really indicate that the person is lazy.
2. It is difficult to fall asleep at night. As much as you want to doze during the day, you will have to forget about this habit. Helps to cope with the feeling of fatigue and the desire to sleep a cup of strong coffee, intense physical exercise, walk in the fresh air, cold and hot shower... Also, make sure that it is not too hot in the room, otherwise you will simply be "worn out", you cannot avoid a nap. The optimum air temperature in the room is 22 degrees, humidity is 70-80%.
3. There is no sense of proportion. What does a person feel when they overeat? Abdominal heaviness, pain. The same goes for sleep. Sleeping is even worse than not getting enough sleep. Lie down for 10 minutes and get up in a couple of hours? You need to look for a way out of the situation. First of all, check your health. Such a craving for drowsiness may indicate a serious illness.

There is a post on the Internet with a picture, the hero of which exclaims, wringing his hands, something like “What a pity that we did not want to sleep during the day at kindergarten! How many opportunities have been lost. " Indeed, the mass modern peopleworking in offices and factories cannot afford the pleasure of a nap. It is only available to remote workers, but they are often busy all day trying to earn money and, just like office workers and other employees, suffer from lack of sleep.

However, not everyone finds naps useful. Sometimes those who doze during the day cannot then fall asleep at night, in addition, there is a belief about the dangers of sleeping at sunset. On the other hand, there are people who, not paying attention to the signs, calmly go to bed even during the day, at least in the late afternoon and get a lack of sleep at night or simply struggle in this way with the accumulated fatigue. So is naps harmful or beneficial? About this - in today's article.

Historians believe that the tradition of many hours of sleep a night for a person came from the wealthy class, who went to bed simply because there was nothing else to do. In the Middle Ages, when there was no electricity at all, simple people in winter, we went to bed as soon as it got dark. But at two or three in the morning they got up, got down to business again, could go to visit each other, and then went to bed again for several hours.

Sleep time: how much to sleep during the day?

The duration of daytime sleep can be different - someone will take a nap for 10 minutes and get up refreshed, while someone needs up to two hours to get enough sleep. But for the beginning of the conversation we will choose something in between - when the sleep time during the day is 20-30 minutes. Many people note that they feel sorry for wasting time on daytime sleep, even if it lasts only 10-15 minutes. They do not go to bed every day, but only in moments of extreme fatigue, explaining this by the fear of nocturnal insomnia. Others spend their entire adult life in bed after dinner for 20-30 minutes and, mind you, they sleep well at night.

Human sleep during the day: protecting the brain

Sleep has been shown to increase production and circulation, among other things. cerebrospinal fluid, which is called liquor. That is, our brain and spinal cord are, as it were, in a pillow of moisture, which has certain properties. By increasing the circulation of cerebrospinal fluid during those 20-30 minutes that we sleep during the day, toxic metabolic products are intensively removed from the brain.

Thus, a person's daytime sleep lasting 20-30 minutes performs a cleansing function and literally "brainwashes". By the way, among the excreted substances there is also the so-called amyloid protein, from which plaques are formed in Alzheimer's disease.

According to scientists, in the first 20 minutes of naps, there is a peak in the production of serotonin, a hormone of good mood that not only dilates blood vessels and improves blood flow and brain function, but also stimulates the center of joy. Therefore, after a day's sleep, a person gets up in a cheerful and cheerful mood and looks at the world in a completely different way, noticing the good in it, not the bad. So a day's sleep helps fight stress and increases performance.

Often people who sleep 20-30 minutes during the day say that after such a rest the mountains are ready to move and, getting out of bed, immediately and even happily get down to business. In addition, naps during the day improve cognitive abilities, which means learning opportunities. Interestingly, scientists and doctors recommend not to go to bed during the day without hiding, and to hide behind not just a sheet or a blanket, but a real blanket.

Sleep time during the day is distributed for a reason. Experts distinguish phases in it: the first 10 minutes is an ultra-short sleep, up to 20 minutes is a powerful sleep, and up to 30 minutes - sleep is called "extended strength". The ideal duration of daytime sleep was also calculated - 26 minutes. Moreover, such a dream will not affect the ability to fall asleep at night.

How to sleep for 20-30 minutes?

There are hard science tips on how to lie down, fall asleep and wake up in the required 26 minutes. The very first advice sounds paradoxical at first glance - it is ... to have a cup of coffee before bed. The fact is that caffeine begins to act excitingly after 20 minutes, in addition, it has a diuretic effect, and after 20-25 minutes you will have to wake up willy-nilly. The second tip is to trick the brain into creating darkness for it. For this, an opaque mask is put on the eyes.

Third, you must sleep lying down. Sleeping with folded arms on a table or sleeping in an armchair will not do that good. Fourth, cover yourself with a heavy blanket. Not in the sense of being thick and hot, but perceptible in weight. This will give a childish feeling of comfort and, in addition, the large contact area of \u200b\u200bthe blanket with the body reduces the activity of the sympathetic nervous system and increases the parasympathetic, and this latter is responsible in the body for the fight against stress and for peace. All these actions in a person who works hard and gets tired will certainly lead to instant sleep.

But what if a person sleeps more than 30 minutes during the day? Doctors associate sleep lasting about an hour with anxious awakening. After half an hour, sleep enters deep sleep. At this time, breathing and heart rate decrease, the rate of cell division begins to slow down, the parasympathetic nervous system is activated, the muscles relax and suddenly ... an hour has passed, and at this moment the person wakes up.

It takes time to re-enable all processes, and sometimes it can reach one and a half to two hours. Simply put, waking up in the deep sleep phase, a person is not able to work and actively act. Not about any vigor, increased efficiency and good mood we are not talking. Thus, an hour's sleep is one of the worst nap options.

The sleep, which lasts an hour and a half, was labeled by doctors as "sleep without rest." On the one hand, the deep sleep phase ends by this time, but a person wakes up after such a dream a little disoriented. The muscles have not yet returned to tone, they are not ready to act. A person still wants to lie down, he is, as it were, between sleep and wakefulness. In this state, it is impossible to immediately join the rhythm of the working day.

What's wrong with a two-hour sleep? Sleep hormone

And finally, it remains to talk about sleep time during the day two hours. Will you be able to get enough sleep if you devote such a rather noticeable part of the day to daytime sleep? Such a dream is called "ultra-long healthy sleep." This is already a real dream, with all the phases that follow each other correctly. And, if there is time, then such a dream is very preferable. A person will wake up in a good mood, rested, full of energy and vigorous. It would seem that everything is fine, but there is also a catch. What's wrong with a two-hour sleep?

The problem is that it disrupts the rhythm of night and day sleep. The sleep hormone - melatonin - is produced during the day in a certain amount. With a 2-hour daytime sleep, the person will exhaust most daily melatonin, it will not be enough for the night, and when it is time to go to bed, difficulties will begin to fall asleep. A person's night sleep will be inadequate, will not bring the desired rest, and again we will dream about two hours of "sleep" for half a day. These are broken circadian rhythms. And it doesn't bring anything good. You need to sleep soundly and for a long time at night, and during the day - if you are very tired - the revitalizing 26-minute sleep, which was mentioned above, is best suited.

A person rests when he sleeps. Full rest is impossible without a night's sleep, but sometimes you need to take a nap in the daytime for better health and restoration of working capacity. Although scientists-somnologists admit: daytime sleep is an exclusively individual matter.

When being determines sleep

The need for daytime sleep depends on many factors:

• biorhythms;
• physiological conditions;
• professional responsibilities;
• the degree of satisfaction of the need for night sleep, etc.

People are divided into "owls" and "larks". Lark people get up early, and it's normal for them to sleep during the day. Most owls do not like to sleep during the day: they really wake up closer to noon.

The physiological characteristics of a person are such that the weakened, the sick sleep more, it is useful for them to sleep during the day. Pregnant women love to take a nap in the middle of the day. Daytime sleep is promoted physical fatigue and mental fatigue. This also applies to certain types of professions that require a lot of stress during the day.

Not everyone and not always can get as much sleep at night as needed. It is common to get up very early to arrive at work far from home. In this case, hours that were not received at night must be compensated for during the day.

Age is also an important factor: the older a person is, the less their total need for rest. The habit of sleeping during the day or doing without it is formed in childhood.

Take care of sleep from a young age

The fact that an afternoon nap is necessary is taught in deep childhood. So, in kindergarten, children must be put to bed at noon, and an hour and a half are given to rest. Quiet hour is an integral part of children's holiday camps and other school and preschool institutions... Even then, it is clear that not everyone is equally as simple to fall asleep during the day. Some fall asleep quickly and easily, and wake up just as easily, while others spin for a long time, look at the ceiling, and when they finally fall asleep, it's time to go up for lunch.

There are several reasons for this: active live children with a sanguine temperament have time to play enough and run up to quiet time, and therefore they sleep without hind legs. Phlegmatic children who perceive the world philosophically lie down calmly and calmly fall asleep. Worse daytime sleep comes to melancholic and choleric people. By the way, this applies not only to children - adults who have retained the type of temperament carry through the years the attitude towards the embrace of Morpheus.

Another reason may be the lack of a daily routine as such in the child at home. It is not for nothing that mothers who are going to take their child to kindergarten for the first time are advised by pediatricians to try in advance to put the baby on the rails of an orderly daily routine: eating by the hour, getting up early, going to bed early and obligatory afternoon nap.

The older the child gets, the more time he spends on being awake. But if daytime sleep has become a habit, it should remain. You just need to adjust the time allotted for this.

Don't think down the minute

Having matured, people often recall with nostalgia the sweet kindergarten past, when at work at lunchtime, and tends to sleep. In all fairness, in some places Russia has already begun to adopt the useful habit of Western employers to provide employees with the opportunity to take a nap in the middle of the day.

Such "sleepy breaks" have long been a common thing in Europe, especially in southern countries. The traditional siesta gives a person the opportunity to survive the midday heat with minimal loss of vitality, especially since the employee at this time feels a lack of energy, and, consequently, performance decreases.

I also fell asleep during the day in Japan and Southeast Asia, where people work for wear and tear and the rhythm of the working day is very stressful. Even the office sleep industry has emerged: to get a good night's sleep in the workplace, they release special pillows, earplugs and other accessories.

Sleep breaks can be calculated not only in minutes, but even in seconds. The main thing is to skillfully use them and know what benefits they can bring. Depending on how much time to sleep, the following differ:

• microsleep;
• minison;
• good dream;
• lazy sleep.

The duration of microsleep is up to five minutes. It is effective if you feel overwhelmed by drowsiness. Minison lasts longer, up to 20 minutes. This time is enough for after awakening the ability to concentrate increased, the productivity of physical labor increased.

The most beneficial naps are up to forty minutes. helps to relieve muscle fatigue during physical labor and get rid of unnecessary information for office intellectuals. In common parlance, this process is called "throwing everything bad out of your head." The result is increased endurance, good long-term memory, and an accelerated reaction.

If you sleep during the day, like in kindergarten, from forty minutes to one and a half hours, then you will wake up refreshed and refreshed. The secret to improving well-being lies in the fact that during lazy sleep, bone and muscle tissue is regenerated. True, it takes a little longer to switch to the working day after such a day's rest.

There is also the so-called sediment, which lasts less than a minute. It is difficult to call it a planned event, the term "pass out" is more suitable for such a dream. It occurs spontaneously when a person can no longer fight fatigue and lack of sleep. If such a sediment has comprehended you, then it is time to change something in the work schedule and daily routine.

A normal, not overworked adult is unlikely to be able to sleep more than an hour and a half during the day. And how useful it is for an adult to sleep during the day is everyone decides for himself.

To whom and when to sleep well during the day

Physiologists and somnologists no longer break their spears in discussions about what a daytime sleep is, benefit or harm, because there are many nuances in each case. So, for people between the ages of 25 and 55, a midday nap reduces the likelihood that they will have illness. of cardio-vascular system... And the same sleep in older people increases the possibility of stroke.

The benefits of a nap is that in a short period the body can recover its strength:

• efficiency increases;
• consciousness becomes clear;
• mood improves;
• the tone is restored.

Daytime sleep in the offseason, autumn and spring, when human body weakened due to hypovitaminosis and chronic lack of sunlight: if you do not sleep during the day for the right amount of time at this time of year, the body's immune forces weaken.

Women need not only to provide themselves at least 20 minutes of daytime sleep, but also to "furnish" it with maximum comfort. Those of the fairer sex who honor siesta always have a much better complexion than those who only have lunch at lunchtime. Those who stock up on comfortable office sleep products are spared unnecessary wrinkles, bruises, and circles under the eyes. Their skin radiates freshness.

By the way, you need to listen to the body. If you think that it is good to sleep during the day, but sleep does not come to you, then it is not so necessary to fall asleep. Better to read a book. But if the body needs a midday rest and it hints at it with all his might, it is better not to resist, but to do everything in order to short sleep was comfortable:

• take a pose in which the muscles are relaxed;
• protect yourself as much as possible from noise and bright light.

Interestingly, for a productive rest and a guaranteed awakening in 20-25 minutes, it is enough to drink a cup of warm strong tea or coffee before closing your eyelids. at first warm drink will induce drowsiness and help you fall asleep quickly. And after 20 minutes, the tonic effect will turn on.

Who is siesta bad for?

Under some circumstances, it can be harmful to sleep during the day. Most often this applies to those cases when a person suffers from a violation of the normal sleep schedule. If you have insomnia, trying to compensate for your sleep disturbances with daytime is a poor decision. It's like eating a cake before dinner if you break your appetite. Better still hold out for the day, and go to bed early in the evening. If you try, you can learn to fall asleep safely in the evening, and sleep until the morning.

It is undesirable to sleep in the afternoon immediately after a meal, especially if the food is dense: although a person is tempted to lie down, such a dream will be difficult. In addition, it is harmful because the calories consumed will immediately be deposited where you least want to see - the area of \u200b\u200bthe buttocks, stomach, sides. It is better to sit for an hour after dinner, and if after that it is unbearable, then sleep.

It can harm diabetics' daytime sleep: during such sleep, blood sugar levels increase, since changes in biorhythms lead to metabolic disorders.

With hypertension, it is also better not to sleep during the day. The harm in this case is that blood pressure can rise sharply, and pressure surges are also observed.

You can't sleep at sunset. A nap after 4 p.m. grossly disrupts any biorhythms, causes headache after waking up. A person will not feel rested, but, on the contrary, tired, irritated, lethargic. It is highly likely that after such a sunset sleep, the night's sleep will be disrupted. This is bad for performance.

The head will hurt after waking up and in the event that a person suffers from increased intracranial and intraocular pressure.

A person who wants to get rid of excess weight simply must learn how to sleep competently during the day.

The most "difficult" type of fatty deposits is subcutaneous. The accumulation of this fat occurs when levels of a hormone called cortisol rise. The value of naps is that it lowers cortisol levels, but the effect can be mitigated by lying down on the sofa immediately after a heavy meal. The best daytime rest for those wishing to lose weight is 20 minutes of maximum relaxation, as far as the situation allows, after which you wake up and have a light snack with a grain loaf with tea and a spoonful of honey.

At home, you can sleep a little longer, up to 40 minutes, and the menu does not have to be so ascetic: you can afford rice with vegetables, steamed fish with a slice rye bread and fresh herbs. If you don't feel like eating right after waking up, then postpone lunch until the time when you get hungry. But it's best to eat at the same time.

What else to pay attention to

If you do not sleep well at night and rest during the day does not bring relief, see your doctor. This could be a symptom of overwork or initial sign mental or neurological disease... This state is typical for stress.

With chronic disturbance of night sleep, you need to try to return yourself to a normal physiological channel, refraining from daytime nap. Attempts to compensate for the lack of sleep during the day will lead to the final chronicization of insomnia.

If you really want to sleep during the day, but you are not sure of waking up at the right time, do not be afraid to set an alarm at your workplace.

Daytime sleep - the most affordable form of good rest for adults in the middle of the working day. If you sleep at lunchtime, the body will be able to recover its strength. The same applies to children, they need an afternoon rest.

Sometimes after a day's sleep you feel vigorous and full of energy, and sometimes even more overwhelmed. So is it good for adults to sleep during the day? We understand together with sleep doctors.

When a dispute arises about the benefits of naps, the famous British Prime Minister Winston Churchill is sure to quote.

“Sleeping in the daytime doesn’t make you have less time — fools without imagination think so. You will have time even more, because you will have two days in one ... "

But do somnologists agree with such a categorical statement of the politician?

Mikhail Poluektov

The benefits of daytime sleep with medical point it is too early to speak of vision, there has not been a single study that would prove that naps can increase life expectancy or, for example, reduce the risk of developing various diseases... But what doctors know for sure: a short nap helps to increase labor productivity, immunity and improve mood. It allows you to kind of reboot against a background of high mental or physical stress. It is best to sleep for about an hour and a half, because this is the time that a person's normal sleep cycle is.

Elena Tsareva

Daytime sleep, in principle, does not differ from nighttime sleep in terms of the set of stages of sleep. But there may be differences in the duration of the stages. With a lower level of melatonin during the day compared to at night and the presence of external stimuli (light, noise, phone calls, etc.), there may be fewer deep sleep stages and more superficial ones. The rate of falling asleep can also be reduced for the same reasons.

In the course of research, it was found that if you fall asleep during a period of decreased daily activity (in owls and larks, this different time), then there is a high probability of waking up with a heavy head and even more drowsiness. Falling asleep for a short period after sunset is more likely to disrupt night sleep due to the effect of melatonin production on the biorhythm.

How to sleep during the day

• A few hours before the end of the shift, we advise you to reduce the lighting, and before falling asleep, take a small dose of melatonin (1 / 4-1 / 2 tablets) to help fall asleep.
• It is important to create conditions for falling asleep (darkened room, limiting external stimuli - up to the use of earplugs and a sleep mask).
• A number of large companies are even creating special rooms to recuperate in a few minutes amid high stress.

If you feel sleepy while driving

At home or at work, you can find time to relax (at least during your lunch break in the break room). If it doesn't work out, yes, it's unpleasant that fatigue can affect performance, but still it's not critical. But the feeling of fatigue and, as a result, the possible loss of concentration while driving can lead to much more serious consequences. What should motorists who really want to sleep do? Experts agree here.

Mikhail Poluektov

There is a shortened daytime sleep that is recommended for motorists. If you suddenly feel sleepy while driving, it is recommended to pull over and sleep for 20 minutes. Where did this time period come from? After 20 minutes of sleep, there is usually a fall into deeper sleep. And when a person wakes up after a deep sleep, he may experience the phenomenon of such "sleepy intoxication", he does not immediately come to his senses, does not immediately acquire the necessary skills, for example, to drive vehicles.

Elena Tsareva

There is a study on the duration of the day's sleep that shows that sleeping for more than 20 minutes is more detrimental to performance than 10-15 minutes. This is precisely due to the fact that the likelihood of going into deep sleep increases, during which awakening is more difficult, and the head after that is "heavier".

When somnologists prescribe a nap

The most common problem with which people still decide to turn to sleep specialists is sleep disorders. And the popular advice "slept badly at night - sleep then during the day" is fundamentally wrong. After all, people suffering from insomnia, having slept in the daytime, simply "steal" part of their night's sleep. So in what case will doctors still prescribe a nap for you?

Mikhail Poluektov

Somnologists recommend naps only if they are sure that a person has one of the rare diseases, such as narcolepsy or idiopathic hypersomnia. Both of these diseases are accompanied by excessive daytime sleepiness. And in these cases, the so-called scheduled falling asleep during daylight hours allows a person to maintain attention and the level of efficiency.

Elena Tsareva

Daytime sleep is physiological for children under 7 years old. Adults do not normally need it. In adults, daytime sleep is a sign of either a lack or poor quality of night sleep, or an excess of the body's reserves in adapting to stress. Most often this is observed in a forced situation: with a shift work schedule or in the case of a sleep deficit for more than 8 hours (for example, young parents or "owls" who get up earlier than the desired time to adjust to the social framework). Daytime sleep is not suitable for people who already have sleep problems such as difficulty falling asleep at night or waking up at night, or a shift in sleep patterns. In these cases, the night's sleep may become even worse. This is especially common for people who are not bound by the framework of social obligations (work, study) and can be in bed when they want (for example, freelancers).

If there is a need for a daytime sleep, then this is an occasion to think about a conversation with a somnologist and undergoing a sleep study (polysomnography). Recently, it has become possible at home. So it may turn out that daytime sleep, like snoring, turns out to be just a sign of disturbed night sleep. When recovering healthy sleep the need for daytime sleep is eliminated.

The daytime sleep of an adult, unlike a child, is not so common. Many, even having the opportunity to have a siesta, are in a hurry to redo more tasks, surf the Internet or do something else, but not sleep during the day.

Moreover, it is believed that the one who allows himself a daily day's rest is a lazy person. But numerous modern research and tests have shown that, in most cases, the noon siesta has a positive effect on the psychological and physical indicators of the state of the body. So is naps really good or bad?

Among useful properties daytime sleep experts note the following:

• strengthening the nervous system and immunity;
• restoration of working capacity;
• the return of vigor and energy even after numerous activities in the morning;
• sharpening the work of all senses, improving cognitive and mental capabilities;
• increased endurance and stress resistance;
• acceleration metabolic processes and removal of toxins;
• normalization of the work of all organs and systems, including the digestive, nervous, cardiovascular, endocrine;
• the emergence of inspiration and new ideas in creativity.

In addition, siesta serves as a good prevention of mental and physical overwork, helps to level the emotional background and eliminate depression.

Experts are sure that a person who allows himself to regularly have a little rest during the day becomes more productive and enduring, feels better. The reason is not only the ability to switch and put thoughts in order, but also in the beneficial effect of sleep on hormonal levels. So, during a siesta, the level of stress and anxiety hormones significantly decreases in the blood, and the synthesis of endorphins - hormones of joy and happiness - increases.

How much can you sleep

How much to sleep during the day or at night depends on many factors: age, nature of work and activity during the day, health status and other individual characteristics. It is better to calculate the duration of rest separately in each case, but there are general recommendations of specialists in this regard.

Doctors advise taking into account not only the individual characteristics of a person, but also the cyclicity of sleep phases. There are 4 phases in total, where REM and NREM sleep have 2 phases.

REM sleep phases do not last long - only 20 minutes. Awakening during this period, if you can catch it, will be simple. But the rise during the slow phase is fraught with difficulties. If you interrupt the slow phase, then everything that is useful for daytime sleep will not be relevant, and rest will only bring harm. Until the night, a person will feel tired and weak, may face a headache and a temporary loss of working capacity.

For your information. Whether it is good to sleep during the day, scientists from the University of California have found out. They studied a group of people who had practiced daytime sleep for a long time and compared their performance to a group of people who only slept at night. The results are impressive: the group that sleeps during the day had significantly higher concentration and memory in the afternoon than the others.

These studies have proven that with the correct duration and time of daytime sleep, siesta does not disturb biorhythms, does not lead to insomnia, and significantly improves health and performance.

Who and why shouldn't sleep during the day

But siesta is not always beneficial for a person. Sleeping during the day is harmful if done incorrectly. Experts note the following problems that you may encounter due to daytime sleep:

1. Those who sleep for a long time at lunchtime can disrupt their biorhythms, which will lead to insomnia and difficulty waking up in the morning.
2. Sleeping during the day can worsen depression. Therefore, it is better for those suffering from it to reconsider their daily routine. It is advisable to consult a psychologist and try to avoid long daytime sleep.
3. In diseases of the heart and blood vessels, as well as in acute conditions, for example, in pre-stroke, daytime sleep is contraindicated. During and immediately after such a rest, a jump may occur blood pressure, which is fraught with stroke, heart attack and other problems.
4. Many people wonder if it is harmful to sleep during the day for those who suffer from diabetes mellitus... Experts unanimously answer that such a vacation will not benefit diabetics. Siesta can lead to a sharp increase in sugar after it, which is dangerous to health and life.

Also, siesta can cause lethargy, drowsiness, and laziness in the afternoon. Sometimes, instead of rest, it gives a feeling of weakness and fatigue, leads to the inability to concentrate and distraction. But these symptoms are most often associated with an incorrectly selected sleep time and its duration.

Important! Constant sleepiness and the desire to sleep at lunchtime for more than an hour and a half with a full night's rest can be a symptom of the disease. Such problems may arise due to high pressure, atherosclerosis, osteochondrosis, cardiovascular diseases, hormonal disorders. Psychological factors can also serve as a cause: stress, depression, apathy, an unfavorable environment at home or at work, fear.

What does a lack of melatonin lead to?

Scientists have shown that during sleep, the human body releases a substance that is very important for health and well-being - melatonin. It is a hormone of sleep, youth, longevity, beauty, which is produced by the pineal gland in the brain. The main condition under which melatonin is synthesized is the absence of light. Therefore, it is produced at night, and in a smaller quantity during the day.

Numerous studies have proven that melatonin inhibits proliferation and serves as a good prevention of development cancerous tumors, prevents premature aging and starts tissue regeneration processes.

Lack of sleep, disturbances in biological rhythms, a lack of melatonin can lead to such negative consequences:

• decreased immunity;
• deterioration of potency and libido in men;
• decreased performance, endurance, stress resistance;
• the appearance of apathy, increased anxiety, depression, insomnia;
• disruption of the hormonal system;
• fast set or, conversely, weight loss;
• frequent headaches and muscle pains;
• decreased memory and inability to concentrate.

Take care of your health - disruptions in biological rhythms are very difficult to recover, even with professional help. It can take not only months, but also years to normalize the condition.

How to properly learn to sleep during the day

Studies of daytime sleep have led scientists studying this phenomenon to unequivocal conclusions. To make it useful, you need to adhere to the following simple rules:

1. It is best to rest for lunch only 10-30 minutes.
2. If you are very tired, then it is worth extending the sleep to 90 minutes, as this time is needed to complete the full sleep cycle.
3. A half-hour or an hour-long rest can make you feel even more tired afterwards than before the siesta. This is due to the fact that the cyclicity was not observed and the body was forced to work in an extreme mode.
4. The best time for a siesta is from one to three in the afternoon.
5. Cover yourself with a blanket for comfort while sleeping. Try to ventilate the room where you decide to rest the night before. Shade the windows with blackout curtains or wear a blindfold over your eyes. Make sure your clothes are comfortable.
6. It is better to get used to the noon siesta gradually. In the early days, it is advisable to use an alarm clock so as not to oversleep the right time and take into account the phases of sleep. After a week of training, you will sleep for 20-30 minutes during the day, and the "internal clock" will wake you up on time.
7. After rest, be sure to stretch, do a light workout for the muscles of the whole body. This will help you get back to business faster and feel better.

Many people prefer to have a siesta on the couch or couch rather than in bed. This avoids the temptation to extend your vacation for a while.

As you can see, naps, if properly planned, are beneficial for most people. If you follow the recommendations of experts and a regularly held siesta, you can avoid the negative consequences of such a dream, increase your productivity and stress resistance, get a boost of vigor and positiveness for the rest of the day.

But if you find it difficult to fall asleep or suffer from insomnia or the diseases listed above, then give up siesta and try to sleep only at night.