Up in the middle of the night? Don’t worry, says report
Posted February 23, 2012 10:50 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – If you’re up at night, worrying about your lack of sleep, maybe this will help you rest a little easier: your body clock usually knows best.
BBC News Magazine reports the eight hour, uninterrupted sleep is a myth. Your body may be programmed for two sleeps with a period of wakefulness right in the middle.
A study of previous research and historical sleep trends suggests humans used to naturally divide their sleep in two until things like street lighting, coffee houses and long hours ate up your nighttime.
If you find yourself lying awake in the middle of the night, don’t worry — read, do some housework, or wake up your bed partner for a little quality time between the sheets.
As the BBC reports, a doctor’s manual from 16th century France even advised couples that the best time to conceive was not at the end of a long day’s labour but “after the first sleep,” when “they have more enjoyment” and “do it better.”
