If you didn’t sleep well last night, this might help

Tired? Take a nap. No, really. According to a new study the effects of a sleepless night can be mitigated by a good nap.

The newly-published research, in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism looked at 11 healthy men aged between 25-32.

It found that even if men only sleep for two hours, if they took two 30-minute naps the following day they had no obvious effects of sleep-deprivation according to an analysis of their urine and saliva for hormonal changes. Without the naps they had increases in noradrenaline, a stress hormone.

“Our data suggests a 30-minute nap can reverse the hormonal impact of a night of poor sleep," said Dr Brice Faraut, one of study’s authors. "The findings support the development of practical strategies for addressing chronically sleep-deprived populations, such as night and shift workers."

For those interested, a study last year of 3,760 people over a seven-year period gave some indication of the right amount a sleep a person should get. It found women who slept 7.6 hours per night and men who slept 7.8 hours were the least chance of taking sick days from work.

More: Scientists think they have found the perfect amount of sleep