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Catching Up on Sleep May Not be as Effective as We Think

catchsleep

 

We’re all familiar with the age-old solution of “catching up on sleep,” after an especially grueling, sleep-deprived workweek. However, a new study shows that two nights of extra sleep (a typical weekend) is not enough to cancel-out having lost sleep throughout the week.

Researchers observed 34 people–none of whom had sleep disorders–get 8 hours of sleep for four nights, 6 hours for six nights, and lastly, 10 hours of sleep for three nights. The study found that even after the participants attempted to compensate on the last three nights for previously missing out on sleep, their bodies were not back to normal.

Men and women alike performed poorly on psychomotor tests, which are often used to measure dexterity, reaction times etc. Interestingly, women did recovery slightly more quickly than men, when subjected to the same tests. But, all in all, it appears that we should be making an effort to get an equal amount of sleep on weekdays as well as weekends, for maximum productivity throughout our busy lives.

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