Want to Improve Your Memory – Take a Cat Nap

(Ok – admit it – the reason you clicked on this article was partially due to the cute kitty picture. I mean who can resist a cute kitty picture!)

Researchers at Saarland University in Saarbrucken, Germany, studied the memory of 41 volunteers and found that an hour long nap improved their memory performance fivefold.

Here’s why they think it happened: The hippocampus – a brain region known to play a role in memory consolidation – transfers learned information into memory storage after the information is learned.

Electroencephalogram tests revealed that the brain’s activity during sleep seems to supercharge the ability of the hippocampus to consolidate information, researchers found.

“Further studies will be required to unravel by which mechanisms the brain distinguishes between information that is retained or forgotten by sleep,” the study’s authors wrote, noting, however, “A short nap at the office or in school is enough to significantly improve learning success.”

Do you take naps during the day? Do you notice a difference in your memory or throughout your day when you do take a nap? Share your thoughts with us. *yawn* I think I feel a nap coming on right now…

Article Source: Sleep Savvy Magazine, May/June 2015

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