Substances: Difference between revisions
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Drugs, alcohol, and other psychoactive substances | Drugs, alcohol, and other psychoactive substances have significant effects on sleep. Their use warrant careful consideration on polyphasic sleep schedules. | ||
== Caffeine == | == Caffeine == | ||
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Caffeine is the most widespread psychoactive drug in the world<ref name="abc.net" /> and is contained in large quantities in coffee and, in lower concentration, in other beverages that are regularly consumed to temporally ward of drowsiness or increase mental performance. Caffeine relieves drowsiness by blocking adenosine receptors in the brain <ref name="pmid20190965" />, due to a similar chemical structure as adenosine<ref name="adenosine3" />, that are a part of the sleep regulation mechanism. | Caffeine is the most widespread psychoactive drug in the world<ref name="abc.net" /> and is contained in large quantities in coffee and, in lower concentration, in other beverages that are regularly consumed to temporally ward of drowsiness or increase mental performance. Caffeine relieves drowsiness by blocking adenosine receptors in the brain <ref name="pmid20190965" />, due to a similar chemical structure as adenosine<ref name="adenosine3" />, that are a part of the sleep regulation mechanism. | ||
Caffeine is shown to reduce time spent in SWS and REM<ref name="ratsCaffeine" /><ref name="rats" /> in rats. | |||
There are large genetically based differences in caffeine clearance time in the body<ref name="adenosine4" />, which might account for anecdotal accounts of varying sensitivity and prolonged effects of caffeine after ingestion. However, having a low sensitivity and still being able to fall asleep does not mean that the resulting sleep is unaffected. | There are large genetically based differences in caffeine clearance time in the body<ref name="adenosine4" />, which might account for anecdotal accounts of varying sensitivity and prolonged effects of caffeine after ingestion. However, having a low sensitivity and still being able to fall asleep does not mean that the resulting sleep is unaffected. | ||
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Because of the potential for it to disrupt sleep and its long half-life, the use of caffeine is discouraged on polyphasic schedules. In particular, it reduces the amount of SWS and REM sleep, which detrimentally affects the quality of naps and cores. On schedules with short wake gaps (other than Segmented), there is not enough time for caffeine to be eliminated from the system by the time the next sleep starts, so it inevitably causes disruption. The negative effects of caffeine on sleep significantly outlasts both the perceptible cognitive boost and the crash, affecting the next sleep block in a subtle but negative way. | Because of the potential for it to disrupt sleep and its long half-life, the use of caffeine is discouraged on polyphasic schedules. In particular, it reduces the amount of SWS and REM sleep, which detrimentally affects the quality of naps and cores. On schedules with short wake gaps (other than Segmented), there is not enough time for caffeine to be eliminated from the system by the time the next sleep starts, so it inevitably causes disruption. The negative effects of caffeine on sleep significantly outlasts both the perceptible cognitive boost and the crash, affecting the next sleep block in a subtle but negative way. | ||
== Alcohol == | |||
{{See also|wikipedia:Alcohol_use_and_sleep}} | |||
Alcohol can increase drowsiness, but it also reduces sleep quality by temporarily increasing the need for SWS and generally disrupting sleep structure. The effect is more pronounced in polyphasic sleep schedules, because the reduced core sleep duration meant there is less time to recover from the disruption in the later hours. | |||
During adaptation, using alcohol especially close to sleep is likely to negatively affect the adaptation process by disrupting sleep architecture. It may also cause oversleeps due to a sudden increase in drowsiness, setting back adaptation that way. | |||
==References== | ==References== | ||
