Narrator:
Are you getting enough sleep these days?
Man on the street.:
Not even close.
Man on the street.:
About four or five hours of sleep a night.
Female on the street.:
By the time I actually unwind it's about midnight and I fall asleep about 12:30 and I’m up again at about seven.
Man on the street.:
I think everyone in NYC is either stressed or doesn't get enough sleep…or both.
Narrator:
It's not just in bustling cites like NYC…all around the country, studies show sleep is often a casualty of the modern work ethic. But how productive are we really, with so little shuteye?
Michael Breus, PhD, ABSM, Sleep Expert:
If you're not thinking as clearly, you're not making the decisions that you would normally make as quickly, that's going to be a sign of sleep deprivation.
Nicolas Ronco, Founder/CEO Yelo Nap:
To me the city that never sleeps badly needed a nap.
Narrator:
Nicolas Ronco is one of a growing number of entrepreneurs who are capitalizing on the needs of a sleepy nation.
Anna Moine, Yelo Nap client:
Hello, I am here for a nap.
Narrator:
At his New York City based Yelo Nap, patrons can rent a cozy 68-square-foot sleeping chamber for a 20 to 40 minute nap.
Nicolas Ronco, Founder/CEO Yelo Nap:
We wanted to create an environment that was completely private, safe, and where people would be able to relax very quickly because they needed to be in and out and go back to their lives.
This is the yellow cab.
Narrator:
Recent studies show regular napping may increase alertness and lessen the chance of dying from heart disease.
Nicolas Ronco, Founder/CEO Yelo Nap:
What I am going to do is recline you. In a comfortable zero gravity position.
Narrator:
But sleep experts caution more investigation is needed---and stress napping may not be right for everyone—particularly if it keeps you from falling asleep at bedtime.
Michael Breus, PhD, ABSM, Sleep Expert:
If you're an insomniac, or you're someone who has a hard time falling asleep, I think napping is out.
However, if you're sleep deprived, and socially speaking, you can only get six and a half hours sleep, but you really need seven and a half, then a nap during the day may be just the thing for you.
Narrator:
If you're seriously sleep-deprived though, a short power nap may not be enough:
Research has shown that people who routinely awake before their bodies have had a chance to go into a REM stage of sleep
performed significantly worse on mental acuity tests than those who were able to make up for the deficit by taking a longer nap of an hour or more during the day.
Michael Breus, PhD, ABSM, Sleep Expert:
We know that in REM sleep is when you seem to transfer information from your short term into your long term memory,
so what I tell people it's kind of from your floppy disk to your hard drive, if you will. So REM sleep is very important.
Narrator:
It's important, however, to awake before the body's had a chance to cycle back into the deeper stage of sleep so that you're not groggy or disoriented when you get up.
But for many who just need a little pick-me-up, a nap of about 30-minutes or less might work better than the traditional coffee break.
New mom Anna Moine is more than willing to pay the 12 bucks required for the 20-minutes worth of Zs it takes to get her through her afternoon lag.
Nicolas Ronco, Founder/CEO Yelo Nap:
Enjoy Ann.
Anna Moine, Yelo Nap client:
You're always on the go. And to be able to come in and just recline back in these chairs which are the most amazing things I've ever seen in my life.
Nicolas Ronco, Founder/CEO Yelo Nap:
These days it's the price of a sandwich or it's the price of a cab ride in New York.
And when people come here and they come out of here their life really has changed or at least their afternoon has completely changed.
Narrator:
For WebMD, I'm Damon Meharg.
