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Why Hitting the Snooze Button Does More Harm Than Good

Young tired man hitting alarm clock in bed at home, waking up in morning.
Halfpoint/Shutterstock.com

Look, we’ve all hit the snooze button on our alarm clock or phone at some point in our lives. There are plenty of mornings where the temptation of an extra 5 or 10 minutes of sleep is too great to resist.

Well, turns out you should be resisting after all.

Hitting the snooze button doesn’t just risk making you late for work or school– it’s bad for your sleep hygiene and overall health.

According to Dr. Aarthi Ram, a neurologist specializing in sleep medicine at Houston Methodist, those stolen 10 minutes or so of sleep after you tap your phone or alarm clock won’t make you feel any less groggy or more refreshed. If anything, it’ll make you feel more tired for the rest of the day, especially if you fall back into a deep sleep and are jolted awake by your alarm.

JALL Digital Calendar Alarm Day Clock

If you want to avoid the temptation of the snooze button altogether, this wall alarm clock doesn't even have one!

Since you’re falling back asleep rather than allowing yourself to wake up naturally, all you’re doing is disorienting both your body and your internal clock. The more times you hit snooze, the more you disrupt your internal clock. The more you disrupt your internal clock, the more it throws off your natural sleep schedule.

Messing up your internal clock may not seem like too big of a deal, but it can have a negative impact on your health beyond being unable to fall asleep at night or feeling fatigued during the day. It can disrupt other biological cycles or functions, including your overall energy levels, your metabolism, and even your immune system.

Basically, there are better, healthier ways to feel more rested in the morning rather than tapping that ever-tempting snooze button. Pressing it every once in a blue moon shouldn’t cause too many issues, but it’s definitely not something to make into a habit.

Meghan Herlihy Meghan Herlihy
Meghan Herlihy is a full-time writer for LifeSavvy and How-To Geek and has written across a wide variety of topics, genres, and formats, including radio talk shows, local sports journalism, and creative original fiction. She received her bachelor's degree in communications from Ithaca College and a master's in writing from Johns Hopkins University. When she's not writing, you're most likely to find her reading a book, petting every dog within eyesight, and indulging in her love of travel. Read Full Bio »
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