On an average, a top medical student tends to fall sleep late, after 1 AM, compared to their counterparts further down the rankings.
A study by Jawbone, a wearable device company who have analyzed 18,500+ students with their wearable device, concludes that the more elite the college, the later the average bedtime.
There is a strong relationship between higher ranking schools with a later bedtime for students.
“More interesting than the late sleep onset times is the lack of difference in sleep duration.” Wrote Jerome Siegel, a professor of psychiatry at UCLA’s Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior.
One solid explanation of sleep pattern among medical students is that students who are sleeping late are using their time differently or fitting more into their days.
Another research shows that adolescent sleep cycles tend to favor waking up later for better academic performance and health.
Some of the students may have stayed up all night just to accomplish what is necessary to get them enrolled in an elite class at the school of medicine.
As sleeping habits of medical students are directly connected to their academic performance. This research holds an important message for all the medical students.
“If you get good adequate sleep, it helps with memory, ability to focus, creativity, and using the brainpower you’re endowed with. As much as possible, you want to get adequate sleep, and that amount varies by individuals.” Jerome Siegel
While some people don’t tend to be moved by the research and data, but they don’t have any choice other than accepting that is proved by the research.
While theory is good for the books, research, on the other hand, gives us data, and data works big time.
You don’t need to prove anything wrong because everything is out there for you to check and verify.
Despite the fact that there are tons of confounding variables to consider while believing on any research, it is possible, however, to try it yourself before many any judgments.
It is possible that what has worked for someone else will work for you in a slightly different way. So, here is your chance to make peace with yourself and do what the research proves to be right for all the elite students out there.