The changes in temperature and daylight that winter brings result in people getting more sleep in general and in particular in the REM phase where they dream, according to a new German scientific study.

Researchers from the Charite Medical University and the Sleep Clinic of the St. Hedwig Hospital in Berlin, led by Dr. Dieter Kunz, who made the relevant publication in the neuroscience journal “Frontiers in Neuroscience”, studied 188 people and their sleep at different times. of the year.

It found that total sleep time was on average about one hour longer in winter than in summer.

Also, sleep time in the REM (Rapid Eye Movement) phase, when people tend to have vivid dreams, was found to be 30 minutes longer in winter than in summer. Normal sleep begins with successive stages of non-REM sleep followed by periods of REM sleep usually with breaks in between.

“Seasonality is pervasive in every living thing on this planet. Our study shows that the architecture of human sleep varies significantly from season to season in an adult population living in an urban environment. In general, societies must adapt to the season their sleep habits, including their duration and timing, including by adjusting school and work schedules to meet the sleep needs of each season.“, Kuntz said.

Source: RES-MPE