According to a study, hitting the snooze button or setting multiple alarms can enhance cognitive functions needed for the day.
The world is divided into two categories: those who jump out of bed at the first alarm and those who keep delaying it, setting at least a dozen alarms within a 20-minute timeframe.
If you belong to the latter category, you can stop feeling guilty about postponing your wake-up call every morning.
A new study suggests that having more than one alarm actually helps become more alert after getting out of bed.
Delaying the Alarm Improves Mental Abilities: the Research
The research, published in the Journal of Sleep Research, is divided into two parts.
The first part of the study is a survey of over 1,700 adults worldwide. The study revealed that 69% of them consistently delay or set multiple alarms.
Subsequently, the researchers found that delaying the alarm improved the performance of some “habitual snoozers” in cognitive tests.
Moreover, this practice seems to have had no impact on their mood, morning sleepiness, or the normal increase in cortisol, the stress hormone, that occurs within the first hour of waking and helps prepare the body for the day ahead.
The results suggest that delaying the alarm by about half an hour in the morning may not have negative effects on sleep quality and. In fact, could have some positive effects on cognitive and mental abilities needed to face the day.
“Continuing to sleep even after the first alarm has no major negative effect on sleep or the tiredness felt upon waking,” said Tina Sundelin, lead author of the study and psychologist at the University of Stockholm in Sweden. “For those who struggle to wake up in the morning, the study shows they may actually be more objectively alert [meaning they performed better in cognitive tests] after delaying the alarm for about half an hour.”
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