June 27, 2025

What Science Says About Naps and Early Death - AI Podcast

6 minutes

Story at-a-glance

Long daytime naps and inconsistent nap durations were linked to significantly higher risks of early death, regardless of nighttime sleep quality or baseline health status
People who regularly napped in the early afternoon or whose naps varied widely in length from day to day faced the greatest health risks, including cardiovascular and metabolic complications
Research shows that naps longer than 30 minutes are associated with increased risks of death, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer, while short naps under 30 minutes offer cognitive benefits
Among older women, daily napping raised the risk of all-cause mortality by 44%, and sleeping 10 or more hours per day raised death risk by 58%, even when other factors like illness and depression were accounted for
Consistent short naps are far less risky than irregular or long naps; if your daytime sleep varies a lot or exceeds 30 minutes, it could be a warning sign of underlying inflammation, energy imbalance or circadian rhythm disruption

...more

By Dr. Mercola

4.6

14541,454 ratings

June 27, 2025

6 minutes

Story at-a-glance

Long daytime naps and inconsistent nap durations were linked to significantly higher risks of early death, regardless of nighttime sleep quality or baseline health status
People who regularly napped in the early afternoon or whose naps varied widely in length from day to day faced the greatest health risks, including cardiovascular and metabolic complications
Research shows that naps longer than 30 minutes are associated with increased risks of death, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer, while short naps under 30 minutes offer cognitive benefits
Among older women, daily napping raised the risk of all-cause mortality by 44%, and sleeping 10 or more hours per day raised death risk by 58%, even when other factors like illness and depression were accounted for
Consistent short naps are far less risky than irregular or long naps; if your daytime sleep varies a lot or exceeds 30 minutes, it could be a warning sign of underlying inflammation, energy imbalance or circadian rhythm disruption

...more