Sara Mednick facts for kids
Sara C. Mednick is a scientist who studies sleep at the University of California, Irvine. She focuses on how taking naps can affect how well people do things. She has written many scientific papers and a popular book called Take a Nap! Change Your Life. She earned her PhD in psychology from Harvard University, where she studied with Ken Nakayama and Robert Stickgold.
Contents
Why Naps Are Important
Dr. Mednick believes that humans naturally need an afternoon nap. She explained on Good Morning America that our bodies have natural times when we feel less alert. This might be because, a long time ago, people used to nap more often.
When Is the Best Time to Nap?
Dr. Mednick says there is a special time for napping. She told The Times (London) that the best time is around 2 PM or 3 PM. This is when most people and animals feel a "post-prandial dip," which means a drop in how well their brain works and how their body responds. Many people feel sleepy at this time.
Naps Versus Coffee
Dr. Mednick thinks that coffee is not as good as a nap. She shared on NPR's Talk of the Nation that in her studies, people who took a nap instead of drinking caffeine did much better on memory tasks. You can watch a video of her talk about nap research from 2007 at the Salk Institute online.
Dr. Mednick's Impact
Journalist Gregg Easterbrook called Dr. Mednick his "2008 Tuesday Morning Quarterback Person of the Year." He praised her work for helping people's lives through napping.
How Naps Improve Performance
Easterbrook mentioned that Dr. Mednick's research proves that afternoon naps are helpful. Her study, published in the journal "Behavioural Brain Research," showed that naps improve how well your brain works even better than caffeine or fake treatments (placebos). It's very impressive when a treatment works better than a placebo.
Dr. Mednick is now encouraging people to nap and even helps companies learn about napping. She believes that companies that let their employees nap will see better work results in the same amount of time. This idea makes sense because modern life can be very stressful. Taking a nap might be a smart way to deal with it. Easterbrook believes that while many famous people cause problems, Sara Mednick is working to make our lives better.
