The nap benefits They are a hotly contested issue. Some people consider it almost a lazy habit. Other people do not think that it is synonymous with laziness, but warn that this excessive sleep It could be dangerous. However, more and more experts say that if the nap is not very long, it is really beneficial. One such study was just published by a team of scientists from the United States, United Kingdom and Uruguayand adds genes and brain volume to the puzzle of the perfect nap.
It is clear that, before talking about the perfect nap, we must remember the benefits of sleep. Adequate sleep is essential for prevent metabolic and cardiovascular diseases and even some types of cancer. In addition, it is very beneficial to keep the mind in shape. While we sleep, we help consolidate memories, so it is very good for memory and cognitive health.
For this reason, these scientists wanted to see if people genetically predisposed to take a nap have a better brain health. And indeed, they have found a very interesting positive link. Of course, it is not worth sleeping the whole afternoon. The perfect nap lasts less than half an houralthough waking up so quickly makes us too lazy.
genes matter too
If we ask in Spain about the genes of siesta sleepers, they may tell us that you have to have Andalusian ancestry, but it is something much more complex than that.
The authors of this research analyzed the role of DNA in the tendency to take a nap by studying the data of 378,932 people aged between 40 and 69 years. All underwent a brain scan, genetic analysis and a survey on their sleep habits. Thus, it was found that there were 92 sections of DNA related to people who reported regular daytime naps. But not only this signal was found in his DNA. It was also seen that most of them had a larger brain volume, equivalent to that of people between 2.5 and 6.5 years younger.
Therefore, it follows that taking regular daytime naps improves one of the parameters associated with brain age. So while this needs to be studied further, it could help reduce dementia.
How is the perfect nap?
Generally, people with a genetic propensity to sleep during the day do so for short periods. This study did not look at the length of the perfect nap; but, before, others have found that, to squeeze its benefits, it is ideal that it be of less than half an hour. If not, the opposite can happen, so it would be counterproductive.
Interestingly, getting that perfect nap on a regular basis is also in the genes. Certainly, there are people who never take a nap, because they don’t need it. Others do, but spend too much time sleeping and end up feeling more tired than at first. However, some individuals seem to be programmed to put their brain to rest and consolidate memories every day for a short period of time. That’s ideal, and now at least we know what causes it and why it’s beneficial.
This can help other people to also obtain these advantages, although first it would be necessary to try to reproduce the study avoiding its limitations. These are mainly two. On the one hand, that the data on naps were self-reported. That is, the participants themselves explained when and how long they slept. However, this is only a small limitation, since wrist instruments capable of analyzing physical activity and thus contrasting the information were used.
Regarding the second limitation, it refers to the population who participated in the study. All were of white European descent. Therefore, it does not take into account how naps affect the brain of different populations. What is clear is that that perfect nap of less than half an hour seems to have even more benefits than we thought. Also in the brain.