A new research by investigators at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) offers a valid reason to get a good night's sleep. In a closely controlled study of fourteen participants, researchers found that they were significantly better at remembering faces and names if they were given an opportunity to sleep for up to eight hours after seeing those faces and names for the first time.
The team's findings appear in the journal Neurobiology of Learning and Memory this week. "We know that many different kinds of memories are improved with sleep. While a couple of studies have looked at how naps might affect our ability to learn new faces and names, no previous studies have looked at the impact of a full night of sleep in between learning and being tested," said Jeanne F. Duffy, PhD, MBA, corresponding author on this study and associate neuroscientist in the Division of Sleep and Circadian Disorders at BWH.
Sleep-Deprived Women Experience a Rapid Decline in Kidney Function
Women sleeping less than five hours had a 65% increased likelihood of experiencing a decline in kidney function compared with women who slept seven to eight hours.
Advertisement
‘Many different kinds of memories are improved with sleep. While investigators at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) have looked at how naps might affect our ability to learn new faces and names.’
Tweet it Now
"We found that when participants were given the opportunity to have a full night's sleep, their ability to correctly identify the name associated with a face - and their confidence in their answers - significantly improved." Participants in the study underwent testing in a controlled environment while staying at BWH's Center for Clinical Investigation.
They were shown 20 photos of faces with corresponding names from a database of over 600 color photographs of adult faces, and asked to memorize them. After a twelve-hour period, they were then shown the photos again with either a correct or incorrect name. In addition to answering whether or not the correct name was shown, participants were asked to rate their confidence on a scale of one to nine.
![Face Difficulty Falling Asleep? Blame Your Smartphone or Tablet]( "Face Difficulty Falling Asleep? Blame Your Smartphone or Tablet")
The blue light emitted by devices delays the body clock and keeps people awake later into the evening.
Each participant completed the test twice - once with an interval of sleep in between and once with a period of regular, waking day activities in between. When given an opportunity to sleep for up to eight hours, participants correctly matched 12 percent more of the faces and names.
The researchers did not find that sleep duration or sleep stage influenced people's ability to correctly recognize faces and names - more extensive, larger studies will be needed to determine if these factors make an important difference.
The new findings suggest that sleep after new learning activities may help improve memory. While the current study was conducted on healthy subjects in their 20s, the research team would like to explore the implications for people of all ages, including older adults.
"Sleep is important for learning new information. As people get older, they are more likely to develop sleep disruptions and sleep disorders, which may in turn cause memory issues," said Duffy. "By addressing issues with sleep, we may be able to affect people's ability to learn things at all different ages."
Source: Eurekalert
Face Difficulty Falling Asleep? Blame Your Smartphone or Tablet
The blue light emitted by devices delays the body clock and keeps people awake later into the evening.
Advertisement
Each participant completed the test twice - once with an interval of sleep in between and once with a period of regular, waking day activities in between. When given an opportunity to sleep for up to eight hours, participants correctly matched 12 percent more of the faces and names.
The researchers did not find that sleep duration or sleep stage influenced people's ability to correctly recognize faces and names - more extensive, larger studies will be needed to determine if these factors make an important difference.
The new findings suggest that sleep after new learning activities may help improve memory. While the current study was conducted on healthy subjects in their 20s, the research team would like to explore the implications for people of all ages, including older adults.
"Sleep is important for learning new information. As people get older, they are more likely to develop sleep disruptions and sleep disorders, which may in turn cause memory issues," said Duffy. "By addressing issues with sleep, we may be able to affect people's ability to learn things at all different ages."
Source: Eurekalert
World Diabetes Day: Lack Of Sleep Increases Type 2 Diabetes Risk
India has a diabetic population of 65 million. An analysis by the AIIMS found that change in lifestyle with lack of sleep were among the top reasons for the onset of diabetes.
Advertisement
 Lead Exposure Increases Risk For Sleep Disorders In ChildrenLead exposure in children and adolescents has an impact on the development of neurocognitive, behavioral and health outcomes. | Advertisement
|
Advertisement
Recommended Reading
Latest Research News
Does omega-3 help Alzheimer's patients? A new form of omega-3 helped restore specific markers of eye health in mice bred with aspects of early-onset Alzheimer's disease.
Drugs used to inhibit the physiological responses for allergic reactions lessen osteoarthritis risk, revealed research.
The International Space Station will be used to carry out experiments seeking to improve understanding of incurable child brain tumors and the muscle aging process.
How many people in the UK have misophonia? In a representative sample study, most people had at least some irritation upon hearing trigger sounds.
Routine eye-checkups and mass screenings enable early diagnosis and treatment of glaucoma. Late-stage glaucoma diagnosis leads to blindness.