As a student, it is a pretty normal lifestyle to stay up late studying. Often, all we feel is being chased by multiple deadlines and choked by a schedule full of tests. Due to the guilt and pressure to get as much information memorized, staying up late is a common and required option. When the results do not reach the expectations, many of us complain and ask, “Is it because the test is over and beyond the course? Am I less prepared than my classmates?” or regret and say, “I should have paid more attention in class and studied harder and earlier.” Then, you wonder, "How could I forget everything that I just read and then blanked out during my test?" However, have you realized that when you replace sleep with work, not only the work but also the quality of the overall outcome will become less efficient? Before denying all the effort that has been put into the process, there might be a key factor that is important yet often gets underestimated - SLEEP.
‘Most people never realize that there is a partnership between studying and sleeping. By chance, the bad performances are due to lack of sleep and overloading our bodies. Getting a good quality and amount of sleep not only influences the ability to focus on learning efficiently, it is also essential to stabilize the content that we want to memorize and recall in the future.'
What role does sleep play in our memory?
Sleep plays a role in not only giving our body some time to rest but also letting our brain process the information we gather and learn during the day to form memories. According to Hedy Marks in one of her studies, three functions must occur to turn something into memory.
Acquisition (referring to learning and experiencing something new)
Consolidation (allowing the memories to become stable in our brain)
Recall (having the ability to access these memories in the future)
Acquisition and recall are functions that occur in the state of being awake but sleep is required to consolidate all types of memories. Without sleeping to a certain degree, it will be hard for our brain to receive and recall the things we learn. According to Marks, questions such as “how sleep enhances memory” (Marks) are still unknown. However, the scientists clarified that “it appears to involve the brain's hippocampus and neocortex”(Marks), which is where the long-term memories are stored in our brain. During sleep, this process can be described as the hippocampus replaying the events that happen during the day for the neocortex to review these memories, which will help them to last longer in our brain.
How do different stages of sleep sort through the memories?
In each stage, different memories of the day will be filtered out or eliminated. During non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep, these selected memories become more concreted. For example, many kinds of memories were found to be more secure during slow-wave sleep or deep sleep. Then, in rapid eye movement sleep (REM), the process continues and more emotional memories will be undertaken. This stage of sleep especially helps people to cope with difficulties.
How does the quality and quantity of sleeping affect our memory?
Getting enough rest helps us to concentrate when processing new information. Getting a ‘good’ sleep after learning can consolidate the information into memories and allow it to be stored in our brain. Thus, how much does the quality and quantity of sleeping affect our memory? Well, first of all, a person who struggles with sleep deprivation won’t be able to concentrate ideally and therefore cannot learn efficiently. Secondly, “sleep itself has a role in the consolidation of memory, which is essential for learning new information.” (LeWine) Studies have shown that for people who don’t get enough sleep, their learning abilities can be lower by up to 40% due to potential impacts including having trouble focusing, poor emotions, and behavioral control. In the meantime, as the brain does not have time to consolidate the memories, it will lack the ability to retain factual information or process the memories, which will be the time when we start to find it difficult to remember things.
What are some suggestions?
Different age groups have their range of recommended sleep hours. For students of school age (6-13), around 9-11 hours of sleep is suggested. When getting into the age of 14-17 (teens), 8-10 hours of sleep is preferable, and for young adults and adults, 7-9 hours is the best amount of sleep is suggested (Pacheco). Nevertheless, it is completely understandable that following the recommended amount of sleep every day, and having a healthy+regular sleeping routine is extremely hard to maintain, especially as stress increases along with our age. Thus, here are some tips that are mentioned in the studies.
Have a regular bedtime routine, including a relaxing frame of time to unwind before going to bed. For example, take a warm bath, stretch, and listen to soothing music.
Create a sleeping environment, meaning to make your room comfortable+quiet, dim/close the light, and avoid using electronic devices/light screens in bed. Using white noises or light music is also recommended to help your body relax.
Drink or use less alcohol and medications, and avoid caffeine after 2 pm.
Have a regular exercise routine, but avoid doing an exercise right before going to bed.
Don’t go to bed hungry, but also avoid eating right before going to bed.
Take short naps earlier in the day. Research has shown that a 45-60 minute powerful nap can refresh your mind, increase retention in the hippocampus, and lead your brain to enter the stage of deep sleep. This will benefit your memory consolidation, making things easier to recall!
Citations:
LeWine, Howard. “Too Little Sleep, and Too Much, Affect Memory - Harvard Health Blog.” Harvard Health Blog, 30 Oct. 2015, www.health.harvard.edu/blog/little-sleep-much-affect-memory-201405027136.
Marks, Hedy. “Sleep Deprivation and Memory Loss.” WebMD, WebMD, 31 Mar. 2011, www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/sleep-deprivation-effects-on-memory.
Suni, Eric. “How Lack of Sleep Impacts Cognitive Performance and Focus.” Sleep Foundation, 11 Dec. 2020, www.sleepfoundation.org/sleep-deprivation/lack-of-sleep-and-cognitive-impairment.
Ly, Don. “Improve Your Memory with Sleep.” Pocket Prep, 10 Apr. 2020, www.pocketprep.com/posts/improve-your-memory-with-sleep/.