Boost your focus

From boosting heart health to improving your mood, there’s more to a daytime snooze than simply beating tiredness

Heat making you sleepy? You’re not the only one. Our internal body temperature is partly to blame – its efforts to keep us cool during the sunny season by producing sweat can leave us feeling fatigued and irritable.

But the good news is, the remedy can be as simple as taking an afternoon nap. Yes, really. In fact, research shows a dose of afternoon ZZZS can boost levels of alertness by 54%*. Intrigued? Here’s why a well-timed sleep could work for you… alarm, then make your room as dark as possible – natural light can suppress the sleep hormone, melatonin, disrupting your sleep-wake cycle.

Soaring temperatures causing brain fog? A short power nap could do the trick, according to a study from China, which found a link between regular afternoon napping and better cognitive function in adults. This is because, by letting your brain rest, you’re giving it time to replenish its energy.

✱ TRY: A cold compress if you’re too hot to nap. Pop a wet flannel in the fridge for an hour and put it on your forehead as you drift off. And keep a plant misting spray next to your bed so you can reach for it if you need any further cooling.