Respiratory Therapy Blog

First it was said that wine may be good for me, then cocoa was full of antioxidants and now regular midday naps (siestas) may be good for my heart.

Midday napping is common in Mediterranean and in several Latin American countries and these countries also tend to have a low mortality rates of coronary heart disease. A recent study (1) evaluated the association between siestas and coronary mortality in over 25 000 Greek adults aged 20-86 years of age.

The individuals studied reported whether they were taking midday naps, the duration and the frequency of the naps. The participants were then categorized:

• those that never take naps
• those taking regular midday naps, at least 3 times/week with average nap time of at least 30 minutes (systematic napping)
• those taking midday naps irregularly, once or twice per week or those taking short midday naps (< 30 mins) irrespective of frequency (occasional napping)

The participants also reported their occupational & leisure time physical activity, along with dietary intake. The average duration follow-up with the participants was 6.32 years.

The study found strong evidence of an association between siestas and lower risk of coronary mortality in men and a marginal association in women. Overall those that taking midday naps systematically had a 37% lower rate of coronary death. Among men the association was striking when the analysis as restricted to working men and was weaker in men who weren’t currently working (mostly retirees). There was only a small population of working women in the study so they were unable to compare working women and non-working women.

The reason for the decrease in coronary mortality with regular midday napping may be related to the fact midday napping may be a stress-releasing habit. There is already evidence that stress has both short and long-term effects on coronary heart disease. The fact that the association of siestas and lower coronary mortality in working men may be because of common occupational stress.

This is a nice large study but it may not yet be time to take our pillows to work, there needs to be more studies to confirm the findings found here. I will personally continue to enjoy my afternoon naps and feel good in knowing that I am contributing to my heart health.

_________

(1) Naska A, Oikonomou E, Trichopoulou A, et al. Siesta in healthy adults and coronary mortality in the general population. Arch Intern Med 2007 Feb 12; 167(3):296-301.