mypsychology:

25 Napping Facts Every College Student Should Know

1. It makes you smarter
   According
   to Dr. Matthew Walker of the University of California, napping for as
   little as one hour resets your short-term memory and helps you learn
   facts more easily after you wake up.
2. Abandon all-nighters
   Foregoing
   sleep by cramming all night reduces your ability to retain information
   by up to 40%. If you can, mix in a nap somewhere to refresh your
   hippocampus.
3. It doesn’t mean what you think
   If
   you know you have to pull an all-nighter, try a “prophylactic nap.”
   It’s a short nap in advance of expected sleep deprivation that will help
   you stay alert for up to 10 hours afterwards.
4. You can’t avoid that down period after lunch by not eating
   Human
   bodies naturally go through two phases of deep tiredness, one between
   2-4 a.m. and between 1-3 p.m. Skipping lunch won’t help this period of
   diminished alertness and coordination.
5. Pick the right time
   After
   lunch in the early afternoon your body naturally gets tired. This is
   the best time to take a brief nap, as it’s early enough to not mess with
   your nighttime sleep.
6. Hour naps are great
   A
   60-minute nap improves alertness for 10 hours, although with naps over
   45 minutes you risk what’s known as “sleep inertia,” that groggy feeling
   that may last for half an hour or more.
7. But short naps are best
   For
   healthy young adults, naps as short as 20, 10, or even 2 minutes can be
   all you need to get the mental benefits of sleep, without risking
   grogginess.
8. Drink coffee first
   The
   way this works is you drink a cup of coffee right before taking your
   20-minute or half-hour nap, which is precisely how long caffeine takes
   to kick in. That way when you wake up, you’re not only refreshed, but
   ready to go.
9. The NASA nap
   A
   little group called NASA discovered that just a 26-minute nap increases
   performance by 34% and alertness by 54%. Pilots take advantage of NASA
   naps while planes are on autopilot.
10. Can’t sleep? Don’t stress
    Even
    if you can’t fall asleep for a nap, just laying down and resting has
    benefits. Studies have found resting results in lowered blood pressure,
    which even some college kids have to worry about if they are genetically
    predisposed to high blood pressure.
11. Napping may save your life
    A
    multi-year Greek study found napping at least three times per week for
    at least 30 minutes resulted in a 37% lower death rate due to heart
    problems.
12. More nap benefits for the brain
    Not only will napping improve your alertness, it will also help your decision-making, creativity, and sensory perception.
13. But wait, there’s more
    Studies
    have found napping raises your stamina 11%, increases ability to stay
    asleep all night by 12%, and lowers the time required to fall asleep by
    14%.
14. The ultimate nap
    According
    to Dr. Sara Mednick, the best nap occurs when REM sleep is in
    proportion to slow-wave sleep. Use her patented Take A Nap Nap Wheel to
    calculate what time of day you can nap to the max.
15. Fight the Freshman 15
    Research
    shows that women who sleep five hours at night are 32% more likely to
    experience major weight gain than those sleeping seven hours. A two-hour
    nap isn’t feasible for many, but napping is a good way to make up for
    at least some lost night sleep.
16. If it was good enough for them…
    Presidents
    JFK and Bill Clinton used to nap every day to help ease the heavy
    burden of ruling the free world. Of course, they also had other
    relaxation methods, but we won’t get into those.
17. Do like the Romans do
    In
    ancient Rome, everyone, including children, retreated for a 2 or 3-hour
    nap after lunch. No doubt this is the reason the Roman empire lasted
    over 1,000 years
18. Don’t wait too long
    The
    latest you want to wake up from a nap is five hours before bedtime,
    otherwise you risk not being able to fall asleep at night.
19. Sugar is not a good substitute for a nap
    When
    we are tired, we instinctively reach for foods with a high glycemic
    index, but after the initial energy wears off, we’re left more tired
    than we were before.
20. It’s a good way to catch up
    If
    it takes you less than five minutes to fall asleep at night, you are
    sleep deprived. If you never can seem to get to bed earlier at night, a
    mid-day nap is a great way to catch up on sleep.
21. Underclassmen need more sleep
    Freshmen
    and sophomores who are still in your teens: you need up to 10 hours of
    sleep to feel rested. So odds are, you are sleep-deprived.
22. You’ll have to leave the party sooner
    After
    one school-week of not getting enough sleep, three alcoholic drinks
    will affect you the same way six would when you are fully rested.
23. Don’t drive drowsy
    Don’t
    be afraid to take advantage of an “emergency nap” on the side of the
    road in your car. Every year, as many as 100,000 traffic fatalities are
    caused by sleepy people behind the wheel.
24. The Einstein Method
    If
    you are concerned about sleeping too long, do what Albert Einstein
    regularly did: hold a pencil while you’re drifting off, so when you fall
    asleep, the pencil dropping will wake you up. (We do not guarantee you
    will wake up with a 180 IQ.)
25. Missing sleep is worse at your age
    For people ages 18 to 24, sleep deprivation impairs performance more significantly than in other age brackets.

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