11/26/2025
🧠Skipping naps might shrink your brain.
People who regularly have 30 min naps larger brain volume—potentially slowing brain aging by up to 6.5 years.
Yes, skipping your daily nap might (quite literally) come at a cost to your brain.
A large-scale study from University College London and the University of the Republic in Uruguay has found that people who regularly nap tend to have larger total brain volume—a physical marker linked to better brain health and a reduced risk of dementia.
Using data from over 35,000 participants in the UK Biobank, researchers applied a method called Mendelian randomisation, which uses genetic variants to reduce the influence of lifestyle-based confounding factors. They found that individuals genetically inclined to nap had brains that appeared 2.6 to 6.5 years “younger” in size.
Though the study doesn’t prove that napping causes brain growth, it offers strong evidence of a connection between habitual napping and healthier brain aging. While it didn’t find any immediate effects on memory, reaction time, or visual processing, prior research suggests short naps can temporarily boost alertness and cognitive performance. The researchers lacked data on nap duration, but previous studies indicate that naps under 30 minutes are ideal for brain benefits without disrupting nighttime sleep. As the first study of its kind on this scale, the findings suggest that your midday rest might be doing more than just fighting fatigue—it could be helping your brain stay sharper, longer.
Source:
"Regular napping linked to larger brain volume." UCL News, 2023
