On the last Sunday in October, we will set our clocks back one hour. This can temporarily disrupt some people’s sleep patterns. A study from the University of Jyväskylä in Finland found that sleep deprivation negatively impacts learning, particularly through the function of the brain’s hippocampus. Although resetting your clock may affect your alertness, short-term sleep disturbances do not permanently impair your ability to learn.
Early in the morning on the last Sunday in October, the clock switches back to winter time. In other words, the hands of the clock will be set back one hour. Switching to winter time is considered the easier of the two clock transitions a year because you get an hour of sleep. Sleep patterns can be temporarily disrupted, so making an hourly change may be difficult for some people.
Researchers from the Department of Psychology at the University of Jyväskylä in Finland studied how sleep deprivation affects an individual’s learning process. Their research focused specifically on the hippocampus, which is responsible for long-term memory.
Certain brain phenomena related to long-term memory are most common during sleep. Our interest in studying functions related to the consolidation of memory traces ultimately led us to examine the hippocampus during the initial period of rest and sleep after learning. ”
Miriam Nokia, Associate Professor at the University of Jyväskylä
Brain activity changes during different stages of sleep
Sleep can be divided into two main stages: rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. NREM sleep occurs late at night, while REM sleep occurs more often in the early morning. If your sleep quality is normal, the various stages of sleep repeat several times a night in cycles of about 1.5 hours.
“Brain activity is very different during the NREM and REM sleep stages. Electroencephalograms (EEG) during REM sleep are partially similar to those in the awake state, but during NREM sleep the brain mainly performs slow rhythmic “It exhibits symptoms typical of this condition, such as abnormal activity,” Nokia said. .
Sleep disorders affect memory
Several research groups internationally have attempted to identify the relationship between sleep stages and learning. Because brain activity during NREM and REM sleep differs from each other, it is reasonable to assume that NREM and REM sleep have different and divergent effects on the consolidation of memory traces during rest.
This phenomenon was discovered with the help of several experiments in which people were first taught different tasks and then disrupted early morning (non-REM) or early morning (REM) sleep, which subsequently reduced the memory of the participants. It is being researched. has been observed. Although the results are contradictory, it appears that both sleep stages are necessary to learn different things.
However, one thing is clear based on research. That said, sleep deprivation clearly affects learning.
“When sleep is disrupted or completely sleep deprived, previously learned material is not stored in memory as efficiently as normal,” says Nokia.
A well-rested brain is better able to deal with daily challenges.
Sleep helps maintain our neural plasticity and, as a result, behavioral flexibility. Sleep affects not only how we process past experiences, but also how we prepare to face challenges during the next waking hour. Good sleep and a well-rested brain help you find more effective solutions to daily challenges.
Changing your clock can affect your ability to pay attention and learn over the next few days, but Nokia and its research group have a comforting message:
“While the temporary effects can be dramatic, one night or more of sleep deprivation does not permanently affect your ability to learn.”
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University of Jyväskylä
