Although most students understand that sleep is vital to good health and maximum productivity, getting the recommended seven hours is just not possible with our heavy workload and questionable time management (Watson et al., 2015). Luckily, there is a science behind tricking our bodies into not perceiving our need to rest.
This is most commonly accomplished through the consumption of caffeine, which is a drug that has nearly 100% bioavailability1 (Committee on Military Nutrition Research, 2001). Its structure is lipophilic, which allows it to pass through membranes and be absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract (Committee on Military Nutrition Research, 2001). As it passes through the liver, there is no caffeine removed, increasing the efficiency of the drug as all of it proceeds towards the general circulatory system (Committee on Military Nutrition Research, 2001). It is also able to pass through the blood-brain barrier, allowing it to produce effects at a quicker rate.
The primary factor that gives caffeine the ability to reduce sleepiness is its structural similarity to adenosine. Adenosine is a by-product of the breakdown of ATP and cAMP2, and accumulates in our basal forebrain during periods we are awake (Bjorness and Greene, 2009 ). It is shown to promote sleep, and increase deeper stages of slow wave sleep (SWS) (Bjorness and Greene, 2009). Adenosine levels are reduced during sleep, as it gives our bodies time to clear the nucleoside from our system (Bjorness and Greene, 2009). This results in us feeling more alert when we wake, which is what we hope to be able to achieve without actually sleeping. Caffeine is able to replicate this as it functions as an adenosine receptor antagonist (Figure 1), preventing adenosine from binding to proteins by taking its place (Ribeiro and Sebastião, 2010). In order for caffeine to have this effect, it must first be absorbed and delivered to the proper sites in our bodies. The peak plasma concentration is achieved at twenty minutes after ingestion, which also happens to the ideal amount of time to nap (Committee on Military Nutrition Research, 2001; Hayashi, Masuda and Hori, 2003).
This can be explained by a quick summary of the average sleep cycle. There are five stages: drowsiness, light sleep, moderate sleep, deep sleep, and REM, which is associated with dreaming (Purves et al., 2001). The fourth stage is commonly known known as Slow Wave Sleep (SWS), and is the most pertinent when analyzing the benefits of short naps. If the sleeper is woken up at this stage, they are likely to feel groggy and exhibit moderately impaired mental performance (Purves et al., 2001). On average, people fall into SWS around thirty minutes into sleeping (Hayashi, Masuda and Hori, 2003). It is ideal to wake up before the beginning of this stage of sleep, and although it seems like a short period of time, there are immediate benefits. One includes the reduction in levels of adenosine.
When naps are taken in conjunction with coffee, the effects are more beneficial than either task done on its own (Hayashi, Masuda and Hori, 2003; Schweitzer et al., 2006). Naps will decrease the amount of adenosine in our bodies, and when we wake up with better cognitive function due to the short rest, we will begin to feel the effects of caffeine (Bjorness and Greene, 2009; Lovato and Lack, 2010).
Welcome to the world of coffee naps.
1 The degree the drug is absorbed into a living system
2 The breakdown of ATP and cAMP is a result of cell activity
References
Bjorness, T.E. and Greene, R.W., 2009. Adenosine and Sleep. Current Neuropharmacology, 7(3), pp.238–245.
Committee on Military Nutrition Research, 2001. Doses and Delivery Mechanisms. [online] National Academies Press (US). Available at:<https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK223795/> [Accessed 23 Nov. 2018].
Hayashi, M., Masuda, A. and Hori, T., 2003. The alerting effects of caffeine, bright light and face washing after a short daytime nap. Clinical Neurophysiology, 114(12), pp.2268–2278.
Lovato, N. and Lack, L., 2010. The effects of napping on cognitive functioning. Progress in Brain Research, 185, pp.155–166.
Purves, D., Augustine,G.J., Fitzpatrick, D., Katz, L.C., LaMantia, A.-S., McNamara, J.O. andWilliams, S.M., 2001. Stages of Sleep. Neuroscience. 2nd edition. Available at: <https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK10996/>[Accessed 24 Nov. 2018].
Setzer, Michael. 2013. How ThingsWork: Caffeine – The Tartan. [online] Available at:<https://thetartan.org/2013/9/9/scitech/howthingswork> [Accessed 25 Nov.2018].
Schweitzer, P.K.,Randazzo, A.C., Stone, K., Erman, M. and Walsh, J.K., 2006. Laboratory andfield studies of naps and caffeine as practical countermeasures for sleep-wakeproblems associated with night work. Sleep, 29(1), pp.39–50.
Watson, N.F., Badr, M.S., Belenky, G., Bliwise, D.L., Buxton, O.M., Buysse, D., Dinges, D.F., Gangwisch, J., Grandner, M.A., Kushida, C., Malhotra, R.K., Martin, J.L., Patel, S.R., Quan, S.F. and Tasali, E., 2015. Recommended Amount of Sleep for a Healthy Adult: A Joint Consensus Statement of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and Sleep Research Society. Sleep, 38(6), pp.843–844.
Comments
14 Responses to “Not Enough Sleep? Not A Problem.”
Hi everyone!
Thanks for reading my blog post:) I was initially going to write about the sleep cycle, and how to best maneuver it so that we wake up feeling alert despite not getting a full night’s sleep. Then I came across the some studies that tested the effects of naps with many different variables, and turns out coffee naps have the best results! Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Anais,
Excellent blog post, very relevant to our lives. I just have a few comments you may want to take into consideration when editing your post.
1. The title is very eye catching, but only relevant to about half of what you’re talking about, what are your thoughts on a title something along the lines of ‘naps vs coffee’.
2. Lots of great facts in here, but they need to be cited. specifically the one about 7 ours of sleep per night, I thought it was 8.
3. Some sort of diagram may be helpful to describe the sleep cycle and sparkle up the text.
Looking forward to applying this knowledge to my life 🙂
Dia
Hi Dia,
I’ve added citations and a figure, and will try to come up with a new title. Thanks!
Anais
Hi Anais,
I loved the post, not quite as much as I love napping, but that really isn’t possible. I thought it a very unique idea, and very relevant for uni life. I do have a couple suggestions for improvement however.
1) Try to include a caption if at all possible for the post, perhaps a scan of the brain…
2) Maybe breakdown the second paragraph, as it is very long.
3) For your third citation, I’m pretty sure the author’s name is not research, as that is likely referring to the Committee on Military Nutrition Research, however, if I’m wrong, that is excellent!
4) I noticed that Purves is not cited in your bibliography, despite being cited in-text, could their name actually be research!!!!
All in all, this was an excellent post, thank you for writing it,
Jonathan
Hi Jonathan,
Nice catch! I’ve fixed the citations, added a figure, and split up the second paragraph. Thanks for the suggestions:)
Anais
Hi Anais,
I found your blog post to be very interesting and relevant especially at this time of year! I had also heard about the benefits of combining coffee and naps before, so it was interesting to find out more about this. I do have a few suggestions:
1. Adding a figure somewhere throughout your post would really help break of the text (maybe a figure about the sleep cycle or something to do with caffeine?)
2. I think that your second paragraph can be broken up into two paragraphs as it is a little wordy right now.
3. The last sentence of your last paragraph (not the one sentence on its own) seems a little long. Maybe consider breaking it up into two sentences.
Other than that, I found your post to be really well done! I look forward to seeing your final version.
Emily
Hi Emily,
I’ve added a figure, split up the second paragraph, and shortened the last sentence. Thanks for the suggestions!
Anais
Hello Anais!
This was a very relevant and interesting blog post since everyone loves sleeping! Here are a few suggestions:
– You should make sure all your in-text citations are only at the end of the sentence
– Any numbers should be in word form if it is less than 10
– I agree with past comments on the inclusion of a figure, perhaps of the chemical structure of caffeine or the sleep cycle
– I love your concluding sentence and the tone of the post!
I could not find any grammar edits and had a good time reading the post.
Happy editing,
Dua
Hi Dua,
I’ve applied your suggestions. Thanks for reading my post!
Anais
Hi Anais,
I really enjoyed reading your posts and have couple comments to make about it:
-Try to cite at the end of a sentence and not in the middle; the later will make it difficult to read (this happens twice in paragraph one and two).
-Your first and second paragraph are under-cited, I would recommend going in and putting in at least one more citation for each.
-Try not to conclude with just one sentence because you end up ending it very abruptly. Add a couple sentences, it is important to conclude properly so that the reader can process everything they read.
-I personally feel as though you get a bit off-track because you didn’t relate it back to the main idea throughout your post. Adding in little sentences here and there can really help the reader understand the point to your topic.
For some positive feedback:
-I felt that you really explained the mechanism of caffeine really well and made it easy for the reader to understand.
-I felt that your figure was well placed and thought-out.
-I felt that you did a really good job integrating various components into your post!
Happy Editing,
Kat
Hi Anais,
Great intro! It is very relatable and attention grabbing. You may want to include extensions for possible research in your conclusion, or talk about what happens to coffee drinkers after they stop drinking coffee (i.e. withdrawal symptoms).
Happy editing,
Shama
Hi Anais,
Great job on this post! It was very informative and interesting. I have a couple of suggestions for you:
– In the first paragraph and second-last paragraph make sure to write out the numbers “seven” and “five”. Numbers one through ten should always be spelled out.
– You may want to touch on how the longer an individual drinks caffeine, the more adenosine receptors they will develop and thus caffeine will have a reduced effect. The individual will have to consume more caffeine to compensate for this.
Overall great work and a fantastic use of sources!
Lucas E
Hi Anais,
Overall great blog post and very well written with good flow and logic. I don’t have much to say other than recommending you read the comments others have written! Again, well done and I would definitely take into consideration the comments written above.
Happy editing,
Jonathan
Hi Anais,
This was a very well written blog post that kept me interested right up until the end. Great job! However, there are some suggestions that I would recommend to enhance your final version of the blog.
1) You use the word our and then cite a source in this sentence, “Although most students understand that sleep is vital to good health and maximum productivity, getting the recommended seven hours is just not possible with our heavy workload and questionable time management (Watson et al., 2015).” I think it would be more beneficial to not use personal pronouns and change the words, “to”and “is just not possible”. Thus, I would change this sentence to be, “Although most students understand that sleep is vital for good health and maximum productivity, getting the recommended seven hours is unlikely if tasked with a heavy workload and questionable time management (Watson et al., 2015).”
2) I would flip the wording of these words to increase the flop. You write, “Its structure is lipophilic…”and I would change this to “Its lipophilic structure allows it to pass through membranes and be absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract (Committee on Military Nutrition Research, 2001).”
Overall, great choice for a topic as it is very relevant, especially at this time of year.
Cheers,
Saif