Multiple sleep latency tests during the constant routine.
The "post-lunch dip" is a common behavioral phenomenon, though perhaps a misnomer. Biphasic models of the human sleep tendency rhythm suggest an alternative explanation for the afternoon decline in alertness. Sleep tendency was measured with the Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT) at 2-hour intervals in 16 volunteers from three age groups (ages 10-12, ages 16-17, ages 62-74 years) during a constant routine in which small meals were given each hour. Baseline scores showed no significant Time of Day effect, although a trend for an afternoon dip was present in the eldest group. During the constant routine, a significant Time of Day effect was found for the two older groups and not for the prepubertal group. The results indicate a midday increase in sleep tendency that is unrelated to food intake but that may be related to developmental or maturational processes.
Carskadon
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E.P. Bradley Hospital/Brown University, Sleep Research Laboratory, East Providence, Rhode Island 02915.
Dement
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WC
D000293:Adolescent; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D001143:Arousal / Q000502:physiology*; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000502:physiology; D002648:Child; D002940:Circadian Rhythm / Q000502:physiology*; D004435:Eating / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017286:Polysomnography; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology*; D012894:Sleep Stages / Q000502:physiology*