Two‑Nap Strategy in Simulated Night Work (90‑min + 30‑min) vs One 120‑min Nap
Summary
Researchers ran a 16-hour simulated night shift and compared three options: no nap, one 120-minute nap from 22:00–00:00, or two naps (90 minutes from 22:30–00:00 and 30 minutes from 02:30–03:00). The split-nap plan led to less drowsiness (until ~06:00) and less fatigue (until ~09:00) than no nap or one long nap. However, neither nap plan improved morning performance on their thinking task; some people also felt groggy right after napping, especially after longer or poorly timed sleep. These results come from a small lab study in non-shift-working young women, so real-world effects may differ.
Why It Matters For Night Shift Workers and Night Owls
If you have to stay up through the night, splitting rest into two shorter naps may help you feel less sleepy and tired before dawn, even if it doesn’t boost performance by morning. Be aware you might feel groggy right after a nap (sleep inertia), so plan a few minutes to fully wake up before safety-critical tasks. This study was done in a lab with young volunteers, not on-duty nurses, so treat it as promising rather than a final rule for every workplace.
Notes
Open access (Scientific Reports).