We should all be taking a nap every day in order to boost our brain power.
A group of 16 participants of a range of ages were recruited to take part in an experiment where they carried out two tasks.
The tasks were the masked prime task – where information is presented briefly so it is not consciously perceived – and a control task.
In the control task participants responded when they saw a red or blue square on a screen.
Some were then asked to take a 90-minute nap, while the others stayed awake before tackling the tasks again.
Researchers then recorded the electrical activity naturally processed in the brain, measuring the change before and after the nap.
They found that sleep (but not wake) improved processing speed in the masked prime task, “suggesting sleep-specific improvements in processing of subconsciously presented primes”.
Therefore, even a short stint of sleep may improve our responses and process information.
The study also suggests “information acquired during wakefulness may potentially be processed in some deeper, qualitative way during sleep.”
But if you’re someone who struggles to get to sleep, it could be worth trying Dr Andrew Weil’s one-minute hack.
According to Joe.co.uk, the Harvard doctor recently revealed a 60 second sleeping trick that claims to get you dreaming in no time at all.
Firstly, close your mouth and inhale through your nose and count to four and then, hold your breath and count to seven.
Exhale through your mouth, making a whooooosh sound, for the count of eight – this counts as one breath.
Repeat the process three more times and you should be fast asleep.
This content was originally published here.
