Getting adequate sleep plays important role in fostering positive emotions

Not getting enough sleep does not only reduce the body's energy levels the following day, but it is also responsible for stifling positive emotions.

A study published in the journal Sleep found that staying up late at night, and still waking up at the usual hour the following day, deprives one of the full benefits of sleep leading to an impaired ability to manage negative life events, even stress.

Ingvild Saksvik-Lehouillier, lead researcher and Norwegian University of Science and Technology associate professor of psychology, revealed that the participants in the said study felt less joy and enthusiasm. They also exhibited less fulfillment and attention. Lehouillier noted though that the emotions were not that of depression or feeling down but rather a reduction in positive emotions.

Aside from these, the researchers noted that less sleep contributed to the impulsivity of participants. This led them to make mistakes on a standard test.

The researchers arrived at the above conclusions by tracking 52 healthy adults in a period of 11 days. The age bracket was between 18 and 35 years old.

"These findings highlight that even 1–2 hours less sleep for a few nights is associated with negative consequences," concluded the authors of the study as reported in Medical News Today. They also underscored that a small lack of sleep leads to vital implications in everyday routines such as in one's social interaction, traffic safety, and work efficiency, especially in the morning.

Participants were requested to use motion sensors attached to their wrists while sleeping. They were also asked to fill out a sleep diary, where they record the time they went to bed, wake up, as well as how long it takes them to fall asleep.

Normal sleep habits were encouraged for the first seven days of the experiment. In the last three days, there was already a forced sleep deprivation where participants were asked to sleep two hours later than the usual time they go to bed.

Participants then took a standardised test on three days, at 9 a.m., during the normal sleep phase and on two days, still at the same time, during the sleep deprivation phase. They were prohibited from taking caffeinated drinks from the time of waking up until the time of the tests.

Woman smiling

Researchers observed the results of the tests and concluded that they did not find clear differences when it comes to negative emotions. However, there was a difference when it comes to positive emotions.