Experiment Reveals Why Getting More Sleep Isn't Always Beneficial

A new study from India suggests that extra hours in bed don't mean much in terms of benefits, if there isn't also a corresponding increase in good-quality slumber. The research, which involved 452 low-income workers across the course of a month in Chennai, also found that an afternoon nap was more beneficial than an additional hour of sleep overnight – at least in the study participants who had very disrupted night-time sleep.

Measurements were taken using actigraphs: small, wearable motion sensors that are able to monitor sleep cycles, which are becoming more popular in scientific research. Actigraphs can take readings as people sleep in their own homes, without the need for any extra equipment or complicated configuration.

By providing information and encouragement, along with improvements to home sleep environments, the researchers were able to get the workers sleeping for almost an extra half-hour each night, on average – but the expected health benefits didn't follow. Those involved were averaging just 5.5 hours of sleep from eight hours in bed per night, before the researchers were able to push this up. By the end of the month of experiments, the workers were spending an extra 38 minutes per night in bed, which equated to an extra 27 minutes per night of actual sleep.

Future studies could concentrate on sleep quality rather than sleep duration, the research team suggests, while psychological factors – such as the stress and worry often faced by families on lower incomes – could also be taken into account.

Read the full news article on Science Alert