A new study debunks the idea you can no longer get the hours back from a poor night's sleep. This can apparently be remedied by a short daytime nap.

Researchers have discovered that a quick 30 minute nap in the afternoon can rejuvenate the body system and restore proteins and hormones. When the body is sleep-deprived, this quick nap can help restore the body's immune system back to normal.

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Researchers conducted a small experiment involving 11 male volunteers between the ages of 25 and 32 who were asked to sleep only two hours a night. This almost doubled their levels of norepinephrine, a stress hormone that induces elevated heart rates, blood pressure and blood sugar.

The participants also showed lower protein levels of interleukin-6 that is known to fight and ward-off viruses.

There were subsequent nights that they were only allowed two hours of sleep. The researchers also allowed them 30 minute naps on the following days. They report that after those quick naps, the levels of norepinephrine and interleukin-6 returned to normal in the participants.

According to study author Brice Faraut from the Universite Paris Descartes-Sorbonne Paris Cite in France, the data suggests a 30 minute nap can reverse the negative hormonal imbalances caused by a poor night's sleep.

This is the first study to prove that napping during daytime can restore biomarkers of neuroendocrine along with the restoration of a healthy immune system.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says lack of sleep can bring about health problems such as obesity and diabetes, and also high blood pressure and depression.

The CDC also says lack of sleep hours is also linked to fewer hours of work productivity which often causes in traffic and industrial accidents.

Three in 10 American adults clock in less than six hours a night from the recommended seven to nine hours, according to National Health Interview Survey.

This study was published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

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