Stockholm University’s research study exposes that the snooze button may not be as hazardous as typically believed. While snoozers might sleep a little less, they do not suffer negative results on sleep quality or cognitive functions upon waking.
It is frequently declared that utilizing the snooze button can have unfavorable results on sleep and cognitive procedures, however there has actually been no direct proof of this result. New research study from the Department of Psychology at Stockholm University reveals that snoozing might in fact support the waking procedure for routine snoozers.
The Science of Hitting the Snooze Button
It’s typical to wish to remain in bed, possibly even return to sleep, when the alarm goes off in the early morning. The snooze button has actually been a function in alarm clocks and mobile phone for years and is frequently declared to have unfavorable results, both on sleep and the brain’s capability to get up. However, there has actually been no clinical research study to support these claims. Researchers from Stockholm University have actually now examined how typical snoozing is and what results this habits has on sleep, drowsiness, state of mind, and cognitive capabilities.
“Our findings show that those who snooze on average sleep slightly shorter and feel more drowsy in the morning compared to those who never snooze. But there were no negative effects of snoozing on cortisol release, morning tiredness, mood, or sleep quality throughout the night,” states Tina Sundelin, scientist at Stockholm University and lead author of the paper.
Tina Sundelin’s research study at Stockholm University reveals that snoozing might support the waking procedure for routine snoozers. Credit: Henrik Dun ér
Survey Insights and Sleep Lab Findings
In the very first research study, 1732 people addressed concerns about their early morning practices, consisting of how frequently they utilize the snooze button. Many reported snoozing frequently. This habits is specifically typical amongst young people and night individuals. The most typical factor for snoozing is feeling too exhausted to rise when the alarm goes off.
In the 2nd research study, 31 routine snoozers invested 2 nights in a sleep laboratory in order to determine their sleep in more information. One of the early mornings they were enabled to snooze for 30 minutes and the other they needed to get up right when the alarm went off. The outcomes are soothing for those who snooze. Even though individuals’ sleep was interrupted throughout the half hour of snoozing, the majority of them still got rather a great deal of it– more than 20 minutes. This suggests that their overall night’s sleep was hardly impacted. Furthermore, in the snooze condition nobody needed to get up from deep sleep, and the snoozers carried out a bit much better on cognitive tests right upon waking. Meanwhile, there were no clear results of snoozing on state of mind, drowsiness, or the quantity of cortisol in the saliva.
Concluding Remarks
-“Our research study reveals that half an hour of snoozing does not have unfavorable results on night sleep or sleep inertia, the sensation of not rather looking out in the early morning. If anything, we saw some favorable results, such as a reduced probability of waking from deep sleep. When individuals were enabled to snooze they were likewise a bit more quick-thinking right when they got up.
“It’s naturally crucial to keep in mind that the research study just consisted of individuals who are routine snoozers and discover it simple to return to sleep after each alarm. Snoozing is more than likely not for everybody,” states Tina Sundelin.
Reference: “Is snoozing losing? Why intermittent morning alarms are used and how they affect sleep, cognition, cortisol, and mood” by Tina Sundelin, Shane Landry and John Axelsson, 17 October 2023, Journal of Sleep Research
DOI: 10.1111/ jsr.14054
