Nap

Editor-In-Chief: Prab R Tumpati, MD
Obesity, Sleep & Internal medicine
Founder, WikiMD Wellnesspedia &
W8MD medical weight loss and sleep centers

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List of terms related to Nap

Napping, as it relates to sleep, is a short sleep period outside of the person's usual sleep duration. For example, a person that normally sleeps at night between 10 PM to 6 AM, can take a nap in the afternoon like between 2:00 PM to 2:30 PM. If the nap happens right after having lunch, it is sometimes called siesta. as is customary in many Spanish countries such as Spain.

Cat taking a nap

Benefits

Strong scientific evidence shows that our brains benefit from a brief period of actual sleep (a nap), not just a quiet period, to recover from fatigue and to help restore alertness.

Short and long naps

Short naps are naps between 15-30 minutes and long naps are those that are 1.5 hours or more. The naps that in between are called regular naps.

Benefits

Napping was found to be both physiologically and psychologically beneficial. Strong scientific evidence shows that our brains benefit from a brief period of actual sleep (a nap), not just a quiet period, to recover from fatigue and to help restore alertness.

Both short (15-30 minute) and long (1.5-hour) naps can increase alertness.

Hammock napping on a patio, in Costa Rica

During the daytime, a brief nap is recommended.

• Set an alarm for 15 to 30 minutes to wake up
• Lay down on a bed or a cot if available
• Put on an eye mask and ear plugs
• Long naps can be useful during emergency response when people have to work very long hours.

Power nap

A power nap, also known as a Stage 2 nap, is a short slumber of 20 minutes or less which terminates before the occurrence of deep slow-wave sleep (SWS), intended to quickly revitalize the napper.

Caffeine nap

A caffeine nap is a short nap that is preceded by the intake of caffeine. In a driving simulator and a series of studies, Horne and Reyner investigated the effects of cold air, radio, a break with no nap, a nap, caffeine pill vs. placebo and a short nap preceded by caffeine on mildly sleep-deprived subjects. The caffeine nap was by far the most effective in reducing driving "incidents" and subjective sleepiness. Caffeine in coffee takes up to a half-hour to have an alerting effect, hence "a short (<15min) nap will not be compromised if it is taken immediately after the coffee.

Downside

Napping can lead to some negative effects, especially if the person has other sleep disorders such as insomnia, or circadian rhythm disorders.

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