It turns out that hitting the snooze button isn’t that bad for you. This is why you should quit, but don’t worry about it either.

• A 2022 sleep study found that 57% of participants hit the snooze button regularly.

• A neuroscientist explains how hitting the snooze button can fragment your last minutes of sleep.

• She also explains how being late can increase your cortisol levels and make you more stressed.

At 6:45 am your first alarm goes off and you press the snooze button. 6:54 am, your second alarm goes off and you hit snooze again. Then every nine minutes until you realize you can’t hit the snooze button anymore or you’ll be late for work.

A 2022 sleep study found that 57% of participants fell into this category of snoozers, but how can that affect our minds and bodies?

Hitting the snooze button fragments your sleep

According to Emily McDonald, a Florida neuroscientist, waking up to multiple alarms disrupts later stages of sleep, such as REM sleep and slow wave sleep (deep sleep).

“Say you start your day with 30 minutes of snooze – your last 30 minutes of sleep was interrupted, poor quality sleep. So hitting snooze once or twice might not be the worst thing, but more than that isn’t recommended due to the effects on cognition and mood,” McDonald told Business Insider.

“When the first alarm sounds and wakes you out of slow wave sleep (deep sleep) or REM, pressing snooze can put you back into a lighter stage of sleep (N1 or N2) before you need to fully wake up,” McDonald said. .

She explains that sleep inertia is a transition period from sleep to wakefulness, characterized by decreased performance and drowsiness. Research has shown that snoozers are more likely to feel sleepy when they wake up, but they are also more likely to be night owls, which likely also contributes to the feeling of sleepiness.

Cristina Garcia, assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at the University of Arizona and owner of the Center for Sleep and Psychological Wellness, LLC, agrees. She says that setting multiple alarms can cause us to experience more sleep inertia, which will make the entire waking process emotionally and mentally more difficult.

“Assuming you don’t fall back asleep between each alarm, you’re teaching yourself to ignore your alarm and instead stay awake in bed. This is a no-no from a sleep hygiene perspective and probably from a family/ job/school/productivity too,” Garcia told BI.

You shouldn’t press snooze for too long

McDonald also notes that every time your alarm clock wakes you up, your body releases cortisol – a hormone produced by your adrenal glands in response to stress. Research has shown that this can affect your blood pressure and heart rate. Research has also shown that elevated cortisol levels can stimulate appetite, meaning stress can lead to fat and sugar cravings.

For McDonald, it’s really the amount of time you sleep that determines how much sleep disrupts you. According to her, napping for a long time is not recommended.

“Research shows that snoozers experience a slight improvement in alertness immediately after waking up, but this effect wears off after about 40 minutes. This means that hitting snooze a few times really has no impact on your day,” says McDonald.

Although there is insufficient evidence to suggest that snoozing is harmful to the brain, McDonald does not recommend setting multiple alarms or snoozing more than once. She explains that this isn’t the best habit if you want to set yourself up for a productive day.

“A morning routine is critical for a relaxed nervous system, focus, productivity, and staying on track toward your goals. If you snooze your alarm for another 30 minutes of sleep, rush around your house to get ready on everything you have to do.” When you arrive in the morning, you start your day by activating the stress response,” McDonald said.

Garcia agrees and says that if your goal is to sleep better, disrupting the latter part of your sleep won’t help. “Instead, decide how much time you really need to get ready, then set your alarm accordingly – and maybe choose a different sound and turn it up louder. Then add at least one enjoyable experience into your morning so that your morning routine is a little more engaging and motivating. Then try it out and adjust as needed. Sometimes working with a professional is a great way to get extra support, ideas and accountability,” Garcia said.

Read the original article on Business Insider