1. Less stress.

减压

Curling up in a sunny patch on the floor or even lying your head down on your desk for a quick snooze brings relaxation¹. Research found that stress hormone² levels were lower in those who took stress-reducing actions such as napping. Take a break each day from the stresses and reduce your risks, find a quiet, comfortable spot and take a nap. Even a short power nap can leave you feeling refreshed, renewed, and more focused.

窝在地板上一缕阳光中或甚趴在办公桌上小睡一会都能令人放松。研究发现，采取减压措施（如午睡）的人压力激素水平降低。找个安静舒适的地方打个盹，每天消除一下压力，减少健康风险。即使是很短暂有效的小睡也能令你神清气爽、注意力更集中。

2. Increased alertness and productivity.

提高敏锐性和生产力

If you have the opportunity for a power nap, particularly after a poor night of sleep, by all means, take one. You will feel more alert and energetic afterwards, and once rested after your mid-afternoon nap, your mood, efficiency, and alertness level will improve greatly. Scientists have even proven that taking a 20-minute nap approximately eight hours after you have awaken⁴ will do more for your stamina⁵ than sleeping another 20 minutes in the morning. Of course when you first come out of your afternoon nap, you will feel a bit groggy⁶ for around ten minutes, but once your decline in motor dexterity⁷ dissipates, you will reap the rewards of being well rested and ready to go for the rest of the day.

如果您有打盹的机会，尤其前一晚睡眠不佳时，务必小睡一下。醒来后您的感觉​​更敏锐、精力更充沛，午睡后你的心情、工作效率和敏锐性都得到显著提高。科学家们甚至证明，早上醒来后约8小时小睡20分钟，比早上多睡20分钟，更能使你精力十足。当然刚午睡醒来时，有大约10分钟会觉得有点昏昏沉沉的，但一旦经过这个疲软期，您获得的回报将是休息充分及这天剩下的时间里你能全力以赴。

3. Improved memory and learning.

改善记忆和学习

Naps aren’t just for the very young, old, and sluggish⁸. Daytime dozing⁹ may enhance a person’s capacity to learn certain tasks. That, at least, is the eye-opening implication of a new study in which college students were challenged to detect subtle changes in an image during four different test sessions on the same day.

午睡并不是小孩子、老人或懒人的专属。白天打瞌睡可提高人学习某项特定任务的能力。这一令人大开眼界的结论至少可被一项新的研究证明。研究过程中，大学生被要求在同一天进行的四项不同的测试中观测一幅图像的微妙变化。

Participants improved on the task throughout the first session. The students’ speed and accuracy then leveled off during the second session. The scores of the participants who didn’t nap declined throughout the final two sessions. In contrast, volunteers who took a 20-minute power nap after completing the second practice session showed no ensuing performance dips. What’s more, 1-hour power nappers responded progressively faster and more accurately¹⁰ in the third and fourth sessions. It looks like napping may protect brain circuits from overuse until those neurons can consolidate¹¹ what’s been learned about a procedure.

参与者经过第一项测试就有进步。学生的速度和准确性在第二项测试中稳定下来。没有午睡的参与者的得分在最后两项测试中下降。相比之下，完成第二项测试后休息20分钟者的表现并没有下降。而且，午睡1小时者在第三、四项测试中反应迅捷、准确无误。看起来好像午睡能防止过度使用大脑回路，直到那些神经元强化已学到的过程为止。

4. Good for the heart.

对心脏有好处

Taking 40 winks¹² in the middle of the day may reduce the risk of death from heart disease, particularly in young healthy men, say researchers. They studied 23,681 individuals living in Greece who had no history of coronary heart disease, stroke or cancer when they first volunteered, and found that those who took a 30-minute siesta¹³ at least three times a week had a 37% lower risk of heart-related death. The researchers took into account ill health, age, and whether people were physically¹⁴ active. So go ahead and nap — a short daily snooze might ward³ off a heart attack later in life. It is known that countries where siestas¹⁵ are common tend to have lower levels of heart disease.

研究人员说，中午打40分钟瞌睡可能减少死于心脏病的风险，特别是对年轻健康的男性来说。他们调查了23，681个居住在希腊无冠心病、中风和癌症史的人，发现每周至少三次30分钟午睡的人因心脏相关疾病死亡的风险降低37％。研究人员综合考虑了健康状况、年龄及是否从事体力活动等。所以，试试吧，午睡一会 — 一个短短的午睡可能避免今后生活中心脏病的发作。众所周知，有午睡习惯的国家往往心脏病发病率较低。

5. Get motivated to exercise.

促进锻炼

Sufficient sleep and naps help motivate exercise. Some 28 percent of adolescents say they are too tired to exercise, due to sleep. As adults, let’s not let tiredness ruin our jogs. You’re guaranteed to run longer, faster, more efficiently¹⁶ and mindfully when your body has it’s required amount of zzzz’s. So, store-up, shore-up and build-up your energy reserve with a power nap. It’s easy (free!) and proven effective.

充足的睡眠和午睡有助于激发锻炼的积极性。约28％的青少年说，他们因为睡眠不足，觉得太累不想锻炼。作为成年人，我们不应让疲劳毁掉慢跑习惯。人的身体有它必需的睡眠量，你得保证跑的更长更快、更有效率和更专注。因此，一个有效的午睡就能存储、增加和积聚你的能量储备。况且，这非常容易（还免费），并证明是行之有效的。