As busy mums juggling a whole host of different responsibilities, it's rare we can give into our desire to grab 40 winks during the day, but that's not to say we don't indulge every so often!
However, if recently released research is anything to go by, we may have to rethink our sneaky little habit for the good of our health.
According to findings which were presented at the American College of Cardiology's 65th annual scientific session this week, napping for more than 40 minutes a day can increase an individual's chances of developing metabolic syndrome.
After analysing data, which was obtained from 21 observational studies and evaluated a staggering 307,237 individuals, researchers established a link between time spent napping and the risk of receiving a diagnosis of metabolic syndrome.
According to the findings, while individuals who napped for more than 40 minutes increased their chances somewhat, those who napped for 90 minutes were a whopping 50% more likely to develop the condition.
Commenting on the issue, lead author, Dr. Tomohide Tamada, said: "Sleep is an important component of our healthy lifestyle, as well as diet and exercise. Short naps might have a beneficial effect on our health, but we don't yet know the strength of that effect or the mechanism by which it works."
"Taking naps is widely prevalent around the world." he continued. "So, clarifying the relationship between naps and metabolic disease might offer a new strategy of treatment, especially as metabolic disease has been increasing steadily all over the world."
According to Dr. Tamada, the results of the research indicate that further exploration is needed into the issue.
