A European Study Found A Positive Association Between Siesta And Heart Attack Prevention. Should I Be Napping?
Dr. Sidney Smith answers the question: 'Does Napping Reduce Heart Risk?'
— -- Question: A Recent Study From Europe Found A Positive Association Between Siesta (Napping In The Afternoon) And Heart Attack Prevention. Should I Start Napping Everyday?
Answer: Well, it's a very interesting study from Europe that looks at a relationship between siesta and preventing heart disease, and it raises a question: how much sleep should we get, and should we take a siesta?
I guess my first question is, I don't know how much those folks in Europe are sleeping at night. If you're only getting three hours of sleep at night, it might be a good hour to catch a nap during the day. But if you're getting the usual six to seven hours during the day, and you have a job where people would like you to be at work at two o'clock in the afternoon, my advice would be: sleep at night and work during the day. We don't have any real benefit that stopping activity like that in the presence of a normal sleep schedule actually is going to alter cardiovascular outcomes.
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