Napping has well-documented benefits: enjoying an afternoon siesta can help maintain brain health as we age. It has been proven to enhance creativity, bolster parenting skills, and increase happiness.
Experts have even coined a word to describe the bliss state reached after a brief doze: nappiness.
But your mid-day resting habits can also predict how soon you’ll lie down to “rest your eyes” — and not get back up.
While previous studies have concentrated on the relationship between nighttime sleep and mortality, they have often overlooked napping. According to Chenlu Gao, PhD, napping is an essential component of the sleep-wake cycle with significant health implications.
In a recent study by researchers from the Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, data from over 86,000 adults were analyzed. The findings indicate that napping habits are also associated with mortality.
“Our findings suggest that certain patterns of napping could serve as early indicators of declining health,” Gao, the lead investigator of the study, told Medscape Medical News.
Napping for longer and on a more irregular schedule were both associated with a higher risk of mortality.
“Longer or more irregular naps may reflect poor nighttime sleep, circadian rhythm disruption, or underlying health conditions such as cardiovascular disease, metabolic disorders, depression, or early neurodegenerative changes,” he explained.
Long nappers tend to have a higher body mass index, a larger waist, higher blood pressure, and an increased prevalence of metabolic syndromes, according to a 2023 study published in the Obesity Society’s research journal — traits that have been linked to obesity, diabetes and heart disease.
They’re also tied to later bed and meal times, greater food consumption at lunch, and cigarette smoking. Those who slept less than 30 minutes (a power nap) did not appear to have an increased risk for obesity or these other metabolic concerns.
Other risk factors for dying, according to the new research? Napping between 11 a.m. and 3 p.m.
“These findings highlight the potential importance of considering napping behaviors in risk stratification of mortality in middle- to older-aged adults,” researchers noted in their abstract.
According to the American Sleep Association, a 15- to 30-minute “power nap” in the mid-afternoon can boost energy but is “not meant to replace any nighttime sleep.” More than that, the sleeper risks entering REM and outside of midday, the nap may interrupt nighttime sleeping patterns.
Gao and his team admit the limitations of their study, like considering serious underlying health conditions that impact sleep patterns.
He also stressed that these are just associations — not necessarily a cause and effect.
Still, the findings of this latest study echo those of other researchers.
A 2022 study found that, on average, people who nap more have a greater risk of developing high blood pressure and stroke.
Meanwhile, previous research indicates that having an irregular sleep routine can increase the risk of major cardiovascular events such as heart disease or stroke, even if you’re getting the recommended seven to nine hours of sleep per night.
