Can Napping Improve Your Mental Health?

Source: Shane/Unsplash

Abnormal sleep patterns, sleep disorders and sleep disruptions can affect anyone at any time and are especially common in older adults. Consistent loss of sleep has been associated with an increased risk of medical conditions such as inflammation, heart disease, depression, and cognitive impairment. In fact, persistent lack of sleep has been found to increase the risk of multimorbidity, or the development of more than one health problem at a time.

Short daytime naps following partial loss of nighttime sleep can be beneficial for many people. And while it’s not for everyone, in some parts of the world napping is considered so essential to good health that institutions and companies actually schedule naptime into their employees’ daily workday. An afternoon, after-lunch sleep break—called siesta in Spain, taaseela in Egypt, riposo in Italy, inemuri in Japan—is not only a standing tradition in many cultures. It is also recommended as a key component of a healthy Mediterranean lifestyle, which also includes healthy eating patterns, socializing, and stress reduction, in a study by researchers at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health and the Autonomous University of Madrid, published in the August 2023 Mayo Clinic Proceedings .

A review and meta-analysis of 22 studies, published in early 2023 by the British Journal of Sports Medicine, tested the effects of napping on athletes and physically active non-athletes. The researchers found that an afternoon nap lasting at least 30 minutes but less than 60 minutes not only improved physical performance but also cognitive performance, whether the participants had experienced a normal sleep the previous night or were somewhat sleep deprived. The researchers also found that these performance benefits occurred when the time between waking up from a nap and testing was more than an hour.

In other research from Tianjin University in China, published in the February 2023 issue of Sleep Medicine, sleep experts found that sleeping fewer than seven hours a night has a detrimental effect on episodic memory, or the memory of specific everyday recent or past events, such as where you left your keys when you last came home or where you celebrated a coworker’s promotion last month. The researchers concluded that short afternoon naps can protect cognitive function in sleep-deprived middle-aged and elderly adults against these negative effects on memory.

These studies confirm and expand on what we already know from previous research about the pros and cons of daytime napping: Short naps (lasting no more than one hour) can help improve your physical health and cognitive functions such as memory, problem-solving, focus, and creativity. A few daytime Z's can also reduce stress, improve your mood, and manage your emotions by giving your brain a much-needed break from daily anxieties and pressures.

At the same time, a routine need to nap could indicate poor sleep hygiene or the presence of a serious underlying medical disorder. Everyday naps may, in and of themselves, interfere with your ability to ever get a full night’s sleep. Napping generally can’t take the place of a normal, restful and restorative night’s sleep. And regardless of what happens elsewhere, napping may not be acceptable or feasible in your particular workplace or social settings. For some people, napping can have a negative affect on mood and overall productivity, especially if they're napping in addition to getting a full night’s sleep. That’s why it’s important to discuss changes in sleep patterns and daytime alertness with your primary health care provider, who may be able to determine why you can’t get a good night’s sleep and, if necessary, refer you to a sleep specialist.