Shea Simmons
Most of us press that snooze button a few times in the morning. But what if, in addition to helping you wake up, coffee could actually drag you out of bed a bit earlier?
Programmable coffee makers could help you hit snooze less, thanks to your sense of smell. Don’t get too excited—you won’t be able to toss your alarm clock. Unfortunately, scent alone isn’t enough to wake you up.
However, that doesn’t mean it isn’t helpful when it comes to breaking the snooze-button habit. When your alarm goes off, the smell of coffee can actually trigger your mind that it’s time to wake up.
Dr. Ilene Rosen, associate professor of medicine at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, sets her coffee maker to finish its brewing cycle right before her alarm.
“It was an association like, ‘Look, all I have to do is get to the kitchen and fill the mug, and I can get started feeling better,” Rosen said.
While studies haven’t directly examined the effects of coffee upon waking, some have shown that scent can enhance cognitive abilities, such as attention span and focus, memory, and alertness.
That scent doesn’t have to be coffee, although, it’s likely the most common. Dr. W. Christopher Winter, president of Charlottesville Neurology and Sleep Medicine and author of The Rested Child, uses the same practice as Rosen, but with a bread maker. The smell starts wafting through his home 30 minutes before he wakes up to motivate him.
If you don’t have a programmable coffee maker or bread machine, now might be the time to get one—especially if you wanna say goodbye to that snooze button.
[Via WireCutter]
