Press Release

Results of a study conducted in both laboratory and field settings show that the alertness and performance levels of night-shift workers degrade significantly less when the workers take regular naps and use caffeine.

The study results are published in the January 1 issue of the journal Sleep.

The laboratory study shows that caffeine, napping, and caffeine combined with napping all improve both alertness and performance during four nights of a simulated night-shift schedule. Of the three interventions, the combination of caffeine and napping improves alertness the best. The field study indicates that caffeine combined with napping improves performance and decreases subjective levels of sleepiness.

Despite these improvements, both parts of the study show a clear decline in performance and alertness in the late part of the shift.

“Combining night-shift interventions appears to be a promising means to counter sleep-related problems associated with shift work,” the authors write. “Presumably, the risk of errors and accidents will decrease in association with these improvements but will not likely return to daytime levels.”

Sleep is the official journal of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies, LLC, a joint venture of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the Sleep Research Society. Go online to www.journalsleep.org.