Taking an afternoon nap is actually really good for your health

Ever try to sneak in forty winks after lunch?

To be fair, most parents don't even to sleep properly at night but it turns out that it might be worth trying to get a snooze in during the day as having an afternoon nap can be really beneficial for your health. New research suggests that sleeping at midday reduces blood pressure by the same amount that removing salt from your diet would and also lessens the risk of a heart attack. A study at a hospital in Voula, Greece followed 212 patients who were found to have higher than normal blood pressure, reports Pretty52. A number of the participants took up having a nap after 12pm. These people were found to have lower blood pressure after the study was over. "Midday sleep appears to lower blood pressure levels at the same magnitude as other lifestyle changes," Dr Manolis Kallistratos, a researcher on the study, said. "For example, salt and alcohol reduction can bring blood pressure levels down by 3 to 5 mm/Hg. "These findings are important because a drop in blood pressure as small as 2 mm/Hg can reduce the risk of cardiovascular events such as heart attack by up to 10 per cent. "We obviously don't want to encourage people to sleep for hours on end during the day, but on the other hand, they shouldn't feel guilty if they can take a short nap, given the potential health benefits." That's all the convincing we need.