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Delayed Mornings: The Impact of Snooze Button Usage
Boston - The allure of snoozing those extra minutes with a single button press can be hard to resist, especially during the early hours of the day. Despite sleep experts' advice, a study found that this practice is prevalent, particularly in Germany, according to a report in the journal "Scientific Reports."
Led by Dr. Rebecca Robbins of Harvard Medical School, researchers analyzed data from over 21,000 users of the "Sleep Cycle" app over roughly three million nights. The study exposed that individuals hit the snooze button on nearly 56% of nights, with about half of them doing so more than 80% of the time. These frequent snoozerstypically averaged about 20 minutes of sleep on those days, while the overall average was 11 minutes daily.
Interestingly, the use of the snooze button was more common amongst females, with an average of 2.5 instances compared to men's 2.3 times. The research team pointed out that this trend was particularly noticeable in Sweden, Germany, and the US, with an average of 2.7, 2.5, and 2.2 times per day, respectively. In Japan and Australia, the average was 2.2 times, indicating that snoozing remains more of a common practice worldwide.
The researchers also observed that those who slept a minimum of five hours were less likely to relish the snooze button's charms. They attributed this phenomenon to the fact that these individuals, with limited sleep, prioritize catching every possible minute of sleep, leaving none for snoozing.
"Repeatedly hitting the snooze button can disturb some of the most crucial sleep phases," Dr. Robbins explained. "The hours preceding waking are replete with REM sleep, and constant snoozing interrupts these vital phases, usually offering only shallow sleep between alarms." The study indicated that people routinely pressed the snooze button approximately 2.4 times.
Scientists generally recommend an uninterrupted seven to nine hours of sleep per night for optimal health. Lack of sleep can affect one's mental state, enhance the risk of heart disease, and diminish cognitive performance. To ensure the best possible sleep, Dr. Robbins' team counsels setting the alarm for the latest feasible time and exiting bed when the first alarm goes off.
In the study led by Dr. Rebecca Robbins, it was found that snoozing is a common practice, especially among individuals using the "Sleep Cycle" app, with an average of about 56% of nights having the snooze button pressed, and this practice was more prevalent among females, particularly in countries like Germany, Sweden, the US, Japan, and Australia.
The researchers highlighted that repeatedly hitting the snooze button can disturb crucial sleep phases, such as those replete with REM sleep, which are vital for optimal health-and-wellness.
