Why a nap midafternoon improves energy and mood for a perfect pick-me-up. Experts explain

Whether or not you work from home, a power nap in a quiet, dark space for 20 minutes can improve productivity. Sleep researchers share why

Now that she is working from home, Kendra King takes an early afternoon nap on most days, typically for about 20 to 30 minutes.

"A lot of times, I don't go in with the intention of taking a nap, but instead to lay down and rest," says King, a writer in Philadelphia, in the United States. "Then I end up drifting off and wake up feeling energised and fresh to continue on my day."

King did not realise she had settled naturally into the napping routine that sleep experts recommend. She also did not know that researchers say short naps improve motor skills, enhance memory and boost creativity, even though she has felt the benefits.

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"I'm definitely more creative after napping," she says.

That is because so-called power naps lasting less than 30 minutes allow the brain to rest in a way that makes you more alert, according to experts.

The naps are not so long that you slip into deeper sleep that leaves you groggy after waking up.

"We know it's an easy, helpful way to quickly boost your alertness, your concentration, your productivity, your creativity and your mood. It's a royal flush," says James Maas, who spent 48 years studying sleep as a professor at Cornell University, in the US.

Maas, author of Sleep for Success! Everything You Must Know About Sleep But are Too Tired to Ask, says nearly everyone experiences an afternoon lull in energy.

It comes down to the body's circadian rhythm, which includes two periods of drowsiness every 24 hours, one at night and again between about 2 and 4pm.

In a typical night, people go through several 90-minute sleep cycles spread over five stages, from light to deep sleep, with the deepest falling towards the middle.

Daytime sleep follows the same cycle, which is why Maas does not recommend hour-long naps. When waking up from such deep sleep it can take up to an hour to return to normal, thanks to what is called sleep inertia.

Shorter naps only include stage-two sleep, which is particularly helpful for alertness and memory, says Sara Mednick, a sleep researcher at the University of California, Irvine.

"It's like putting yourself into low-power mode just for a little bit and letting your body recuperate," says Mednick, who is also the author of Take a Nap! Change Your Life.

Her research has found that naps work better than caffeine and placebos in improving cognitive functioning. In fact, that afternoon cup of coffee is the least effective of all three.

"We showed better effects with the placebo on performance than with the caffeine," she says. "So if you think you're getting caffeine, you're going to perform better than if you actually get caffeine."

Find a quiet, dark and cool space and set a timer for 15 or 20 minutes - a good starting point until you see how your body adjusts.

Even if you feel like you have not slept, you still get benefits, Mednick says. People do not feel like they are asleep until they have reached deeper, slow-wave sleep in stage three.

"Your brain is still alerting you to the world around you when you're in stage-two sleep," she says. "But that doesn't necessarily mean that you're not getting the benefits of sleep."

Experts say short naps do not interfere with nighttime sleep, as long as they are not too late in the day. Aim to take a nap around 6 or 7 hours after waking up, and try to nap at the same time every day.

Mednick recommends saving longer naps for the weekends, or for when you have time to sleep a full 90 minutes. After about half an hour, you enter slow-wave sleep, which helps the body repair muscle tissue.

REM, or rapid-eye movement, sleep comes at the end of the cycle; it is associated with fanciful dreams, and helps process emotions.

The only people who should avoid napping are those who have trouble sleeping at night, Maas says. Old people in particular should be vigilant because they tend to nap for too long during the day.

Mednick's research has also shown that napping is not for everyone. About half the people she has tested did not get anything out of it.

"I'd say to those people who really don't like to nap, 'Listen to your body'," she says.

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This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (www.scmp.com), the leading news media reporting on China and Asia.

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