Health & Life

The Four Afternoon Nap Taboos: A Health Hazard Waiting to Happen

Napping is an incredibly powerful tool for restoring the body and mind. However, there are a few considerations to keep in mind to ensure a truly rejuvenating experience.

Administrator

28 August, 2024

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Don’t Go to Bed Right After Eating

After a meal, our gut and stomach are in the process of digesting food.

If we go to bed right after eating, the digestion process in the stomach will be affected, thereby increasing the burden on the stomach and intestines and causing significant damage to the gastric mucosa.

Food digestion typically takes 30-60 minutes. If you fall asleep immediately, you may inadvertently harm your body. Therefore, it’s advisable to wait for about 15-20 minutes after a meal before taking that afternoon nap!

Sleeping for Too Long

The duration of an afternoon nap shouldn’t be too long. Many people stay up late, and their daytime napping is not reasonably controlled, sometimes taking up to 4-5 hours to fall asleep. Such individuals’ sleep patterns are disrupted, with days and nights turned around, which can harm their health and reduce the quality of their nighttime sleep, preventing them from reaching deep sleep.

Therefore, short daytime naps need to be reasonably controlled in terms of duration. Avoid sleeping for too long; generally, try to limit your afternoon nap to 20-30 minutes. This way, you’ll refresh your mind without affecting your nighttime sleep due to an extended afternoon nap.

Sleeping While Sitting Up

Many people who work in offices are accustomed to sleeping at their desks during lunch breaks. This habit inadvertently slows down your heart rate when you sleep sitting up, increasing your blood volume and relatively slowing down your blood circulation. It can cause dizziness and blurred vision upon waking. Elderly individuals and those with impaired heart function should be especially cautious.

Additionally, many people have the habit of resting their head on their arms on the desk. In reality, this habit is not good at all. If this occurs frequently, it can easily cause symptoms such as dizziness and blurred vision. If this situation persists for an extended period, it can lead to spinal deformities and a stiff neck.

Sleeping on Your Stomach

Sleeping on your desk with your stomach down is a very incorrect sleeping posture, and when you wake up, you’ll feel numbness in your upper body. Related studies have shown that sleeping on your stomach slows down your heart rate, dilates your blood vessels, and after waking up, you’ll feel not only dizzy and dizzy but also have pale skin.

How Long Should an Afternoon Nap Be?

Researchers from Guangzhou Medical University conducted a study analyzing over 20 datasets from 310,000 subjects. Among them, 39% had the habit of napping. The analysis revealed differences between nappers and non-nappers, as well as between those who took long and short naps.

Napping for >60 minutes was associated with a 30% increased risk of death from all causes and a 34% increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Napping for <60 minutes did not increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. Napping for about 45 minutes can improve nighttime sleep deprivation and cardiovascular health.

Frequently asked questions

Napping in the afternoon can be unhealthy if it interferes with your night-time sleep. It can disrupt your body’s internal clock, leading to issues like insomnia and sleep deprivation. Additionally, long or irregular naps can cause grogginess and affect your productivity.

The ideal duration for an afternoon nap is around 20-30 minutes. This is known as a ‘power nap’ and can provide benefits like improved alertness and cognitive performance. Napping for longer than 30 minutes can lead you to enter deeper stages of sleep, making you feel disoriented upon waking up.

A short afternoon nap can boost your energy levels and productivity. It can enhance your cognitive functions, including memory, creativity, and problem-solving abilities. A power nap can also improve your mood and reduce stress levels.

Daily napping can become a habit that interferes with your night-time sleep. It may indicate underlying sleep issues or health conditions. Additionally, if you’re prone to vivid dreams or sleep talking, napping in public might not be advisable due to potential embarrassment.