A Sleep Expert Warns Against "Unhealthy" Viral Sleep Trend
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We all could probably use a little more energy these days, right? Maybe you’re managing a busy job, caring for an ill family member or chasing little kids around — there are a million and one reasons why you might want a shortcut to better sleep and more productivity. One tactic that some people are taking is a polyphasic sleep pattern. Before you jump on the bandwagon, however, you need to know the dangers of this trendy sleep schedule.
What is polyphasic sleep?
You might have learned a bit about the cycle on social media, where there are a ton of videos about it on TikTok, but let's dive in deeper. Polyphasic sleep is the term used to describe any sleep pattern that includes three or more periods of shuteye in a 24-hour period instead of the more traditional large snooze at night. These sleep patterns vary from one person to the next, but they typically involve shorter chunks of shuteye spread evenly throughout the day. For instance, some people follow a schedule that includes 20-minute naps every four hours for a total of two hours of daily sleep. Others sleep for 90 minutes three times a day, for a total of four-and-a-half hours daily.
Why do some people follow a polyphasic sleep schedule?
Some folks (like parents of babies or those whose jobs don’t follow a 9-to-5 workday) have no choice but to chop up their sleep into smaller pieces. Others say polyphasic sleep allows them to have more lucid dreaming or being conscious while dreaming. Another reason some people choose this type of sleep pattern is so they have more time during a 24-hour period to get other tasks done.
What’s so bad about polyphasic sleep?
“Sleep is where all of our recovery happens, and it’s got to be in a row, and it only happens when you get a certain kind of sleep,” says Adrian Pristas, M.D., the Sleep Director at Hackensack Meridian Health. “You can’t divide your sleep up and expect it to work. Our bodies aren’t designed for that.” Essentially, your body cycles through several phases of sleep over the course of a night, and it needs to experience enough of each phase to run properly during the day.
Another issue at hand is our circadian rhythm — our body’s natural pattern of sleep and wakefulness. Every animal (humans included) has a rhythm that, when followed, allows it to function better and stay healthier. “For example, a dog may have a three-to six-hour rhythm, and so that's why they're sleeping part of the time, and then they're up,” says Dr. Pristas. “Human beings have a sleep pattern that is about 24 hours. It's actually 24 hours and 20 minutes, and we have to realign our sleep every day, because if you don't, you can get screwed up easily. We do that because we get up at the same time, we have breakfast at the same time, we go to work — we have all these habits that realign us for that 20 minutes every day.”
When you split your sleep up, it's more difficult for your body to get into a healthy rhythm. “If you don’t sleep in a traditional sleep pattern, your cortisol levels are wrong and cortisol is a stress hormone,” says Dr. Pristas. “It is unhealthy and is probably the reason people with bad sleep patterns die earlier than everybody else.”
Do some people function well with polyphasic sleep?
They may think so, but probably not. It really depends on how much total sleep you're getting. If you’re dividing your sleep into smaller periods, it may be harder to get the full seven to eight hours of daily shuteye that you need. “I hear all the time, ‘I can get away with six hours of sleep,’ and I’m here to tell you that you can’t,” says Dr. Pristas. “I will probably never in my lifetime meet the person that gets away with six hours of sleep.” In fact, research shows a lack of sleep can slow your reaction time, cause depression and throw off your immune system and various hormone levels. But if you get enough sleep (even in smaller chunks), research suggests it may not affect your mortality.
Should you try a polyphasic sleep schedule?
You probably know by now the answer is no. That said, sometimes there's no other option. Say, you have a newborn who needs to be fed every few hours or you have a job with an atypical schedule. If you have to, you really should see a sleep doctor to get advice on how to maximize your sleep, says Dr. Pristas. Also, he adds, if insomnia is the reason you’re not sleeping well it’s best to see a sleep specialist for that, too. Left untreated, chronic insomnia can be detrimental to your health, but treatments like cognitive behavioral therapy can resolve it.
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