Not only are afternoon naps one of the best ways to fight fatigue recharge your batteries according to sleep experts, scientists have also discovered that a nap can help lower your blood pressure.

In a study at Liverpool’s John Moores University, volunteers had their blood pressure, heart rate and blood vessel dilation checked. They were then divided into three groups – some had to stand quietly for an hour; others lay down; while the remaining third went to sleep. The sleeping volunteers had a significant reduction in blood pressure and heart rate while the other two groups did not. It is thought that this blood pressure reduction may explain the lower rates of death from heart disease in Mediterranean and Latin American populations where siestas are common.

 

To get the full benefits of an afternoon nap; schedule your nap between 1 pm and 3 pm; any later and you will find it hard to get to sleep at night. Aim for around 20 minutes shut eye; as studies have shown this is the optimum napping time to improve your daytime performance and productivity.  

This entry was posted on Tuesday, January 1st, 2008 at 4:30 am and is filed under In the News, Sleep. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.