Sleep is very, very good. And while it's essential to get a solid seven to nine hours per night, when you occasionally miss the mark, a nap can help a great deal. Hey, it's still a good idea even if you do get enough sleep.
睡眠是非常非常好的，雖然每天晚上固定睡7-9個小時是必要的，但偶爾缺覺時，白天打盹就很有用了。嘿！即使你不缺覺，打盹也不失為一個好主意。

Here are seven reasons why you should take a nap right now:
以下就是你該馬上去打盹的7點原因：

1. It'll increase your patience.
它將提高你的耐心。

Feeling frustrated? According to researchers at the University of Michigan, who published a study recently in the journal Personality and Individual Differences, you should probably take a nap. Participants were asked to complete a particularly frustrating task -- drawing geometric designs on a computer screen. Those who took an hour-long nap before the exercise were able to draw for 90 seconds, compared to a control group who watched a nature documentary instead of napping. They gave up after 48 seconds.
感覺受挫了？據(jù)最近在《個性與個體差異》雜志上發(fā)表研究的密歇根大學研究人員稱：你或許該午睡。參與者被要求完成一項特別令人崩潰的任務——在電腦屏幕上畫一個線形設計。之前睡了一個小時的人能畫90秒，相比之下，實驗對照組沒睡，反而觀看了一部自然紀錄片，他們畫了48秒就放棄了。

2. You'll be more alert.
你的反應會更快。

Whether you're on a long drive or trying to get through a difficult task at work, napping is a great way to increase alertness if you're feeling foggy. A NASA study found that after napping for forty minutes pilots were more alert, and a smaller study found that after just ten minutes participants felt more alert.
無論你開了很久的車還是正努力完成一份困難的工作任務，感覺迷糊時打個盹都是一個很好的提高反應力的方法。美國航空航天局的一項研究發(fā)現(xiàn)40分鐘的午睡使飛行員反應更快。一項更小的研究發(fā)現(xiàn)只睡10分鐘參與者也會覺得反應更快。

3. Just thinking about taking a nap can lower your blood pressure.
想想就知道，打盹都能降血壓。

While an actual nap is certainly beneficial, so is the time before you take one. One British study found that participants' blood pressure dropped before they even fell asleep -- just anticipating the nap they were about to take was enough.
打盹當然有好處，但打盹之前的時間也有好處。一項英國研究發(fā)現(xiàn)參與實驗的人甚至在睡著之前血壓就降了——只是想著要睡覺就足夠了。

4. It helps you remember more.
幫你提高記憶力。

A study conducted by researchers in Germany found that taking an hourlong nap can dramatically improve our ability to remember information. For the study, participants were asked to remember specific words and pairs. Then, half the participants watched a DVD while the other half napped. When asked about their memory of the words, the nap group performed five times as well as the DVD group.
德國研究人員進行的一項研究發(fā)現(xiàn)小睡1小時能顯著提高我們記東西的能力。這項研究中，參與者被要求記住特定的單詞和短語。然后一半?yún)⑴c者看DVD，另一半睡覺。當被問及記住多少單詞時，打盹的那組的表現(xiàn)比看DVD那組好5倍。

5. It can improve creativity.
它能提高創(chuàng)造力。

If you haven't been feeling too imaginative lately, it's probably time to hit the hay. A study conducted by psychiatrist Sara Mednick out of the University of California, San Diego, found that people who take REM naps -- the deep sleep state where you're dreaming -- were more creative when it came to problem solving than non-REM nappers.
如果你最近感覺想象力不夠豐富，可能你該去睡覺了。圣地亞哥加利福尼亞大學的精神病學家莎拉·梅德尼克進行的一項研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，達到快速眼動睡眠（做夢的深度睡眠狀態(tài)）的人比沒達到快速眼動睡眠的人解決問題時更富有創(chuàng)造力。

6. Regular naps may prevent heart disease.
定期午睡能預防心臟病。

One study of 23,000 Greek adults found that people who took midday naps -- a.k.a. "siestas" -- were over thirty percent less likely to die of heart disease, according to the Washington Post."Napping may help deal with the stress of daily living," Michael Twery of the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute said, according to the Washington Post. "Another possibility is that it is part of the normal biological rhythm of daily living. The biological clock that drives sleep and wakefulness has two cycles each day, and one of them dips usually in the early afternoon. It's possible that not engaging in napping for some people might disrupt these processes."
據(jù)《華盛頓郵報》，對23,000希臘成年人進行的一項研究發(fā)現(xiàn)中午睡覺（又稱午睡）的人死于心臟病的概率下降了超過30%，美國國家心肺血液研究所的邁克爾?泰利說：“午睡有助于減輕日常生活的壓力，另外一種可能就是午睡是日常生活中正常生物節(jié)律的一部分。驅(qū)使我們睡覺和醒來的生物鐘一天有兩個周期，其中一個通常是剛到下午的時候，可能對一些人而言不午睡可能就會擾亂這個進程。”

7. Taking a ten-minute rest is beneficial, too.
休息十分鐘也有好處。

Don't think you can actually fall asleep? It may not matter all that much. A 2007 study, which took a look at the effects of napping versus resting, found that simply lying down for ten minutes improved mood regardless of whether or not the person fell asleep.
你認為自己不能睡著？睡不著可能也沒關系。2007年的一項研究觀察了午睡和休息的效果，發(fā)現(xiàn)不管睡著沒睡著，躺十分鐘就能改善心情。

What are you waiting for? Get snoozing and dream on!
還在等什么？趕快去打盹繼續(xù)做夢吧！

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