Drink Like a Mad Man, Sleep Like a Mad Man
Flickr/Muy Yum Think twice about that nightcap.
If you watch Mad Men too much and make a habit of drinking a Scotch or two before going to bed, Don Draper-style, you might want to consider warm milk instead. And your drinking habits in general. Scientific American gives us at least one reason why: according to the magazine, a recent study concluded that those who drank "high doses" of alcohol experienced an increased heart rate, which, in turn, interrupted their sleep patterns and abilities to have a restful REM sleep.
In the study, 10 lucky university male frat boys students were enlisted to drink strong, weak, or alcohol-free drinks 100 minutes before going to bed. The study found that as alcohol consumption increased, so did their heart rate. This spike in heart rate was "an indication that their bodies were not in the most productive rest mode."
As the article points out, this may explain why those who drink at night often have sleep-related problems, including insomnia and sleepiness the following day. And, probably, general grouchiness.
If Dorothy Parker only knew. Well, maybe she did.
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