A long-running study suggests that the timing and frequency of naps may be tied to a higher risk of death, after researchers monitored older adults for nearly two decades.
Napping can be divisive. For some, a brief rest during the day boosts energy and focus, while for others it only leaves them feeling groggy.
The Sleep Foundation says the best nap is usually around 15 to 20 minutes, taken in the early afternoon between 1:00 PM and 3:00 PM.
Short naps are often associated with benefits such as better alertness, improved mood, sharper memory, and lower stress levels.
However, new findings suggest that longer and more frequent daytime naps could also point to something more serious.
The research, published in May 2026 in JAMA Network Open, tracked 1,338 community-dwelling adults aged 56 and older using wrist-worn activity monitors that objectively measured their daytime sleep patterns rather than relying only on self-reports.
Researchers found that every additional hour spent napping each day was linked to a 13 percent increase in mortality risk. Each extra nap taken per day was associated with a further seven percent rise.
The team included investigators from Mass General Brigham, Harvard Medical School and Rush University Medical Center, drawing on data from the long-running Rush Memory and Aging Project.
Participants were much older on average than the article’s opening might suggest: their mean age was 81.4, and 76 percent were women.
During a mean follow-up of 8.3 years, with some participants followed for as long as 19 years, 926 of the participants died.
The researchers were clear that napping itself is unlikely to be directly causing deaths. Instead, they said it may act as a signal of an underlying health issue that interferes with sleep and contributes to a greater mortality risk.
Nap timing also appeared to matter.
People who tended to nap earlier in the day, when most healthy adults are usually at their most alert, showed a 30 percent higher risk of death compared with people who mainly napped in the early afternoon.
The study concluded: “Our study yielded novel insights that early-day naps (when healthy individuals are typically alert) may reflect more underlying health issues.
“Sleep disruption… which may manifest as excessive napping, can lead to increased blood pressure and [nervous system] activation.”
They added: “Daytime napping may not merely be a compensatory response to nocturnal sleep disruption but may serve as an independent marker for mortality risk.”
Unlike many older sleep studies, this one measured nap duration, frequency and timing with actigraphy, a method that uses wearable devices to estimate sleep and wake periods from movement. The associations also remained after researchers adjusted for nighttime sleep, depressive symptoms, chronic conditions, medication use, physical activity and disability.
Among the people included in the study, almost all reported napping every day.
Doctors say morning naps can be especially concerning because they may indicate unusual sleepiness at a time when the body is generally expected to be fully awake.
The study added: “Sleep disruption which may manifest as excessive napping, can lead to increased blood pressure and [nervous system] activation.”
Even so, the findings do not prove that cutting out naps will lower someone’s risk. Observational studies can show associations, but they cannot confirm cause and effect, and the authors say excessive daytime napping may be a warning sign for problems such as fragmented nighttime sleep, cardiovascular disease, frailty or early neurodegeneration.
Earlier research has also connected frequent daytime naps with heart disease, which can raise the chances of heart attack or stroke, as well as neurodegenerative conditions including Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.
That does not mean every nap is bad. Sleep specialists generally distinguish between a short, planned early-afternoon nap and excessive daytime sleepiness that leads to long, repeated or unusually early naps. Experts say persistent changes in napping habits, especially in older adults, are worth discussing with a doctor because they can sometimes signal an undiagnosed sleep disorder or another underlying illness.