Why It's Hard to Sleep in New Places
Do you find it difficult to sleep in a new bed when travelling? That king-sized, plush hotel bed sure is comfortable, so why are you tossing and turning? Science says it’s because your brain is hard-wired to stay alert for potential threats.
Research from Brown University in Rhode Island analysed the brain activity in 25 people who volunteered to snooze in a sleep lab for two nights (the sleeps were one week apart).
On the first night, the researchers noted that an area in the brain’s left hemisphere was highly active, while the right hemisphere was blissfully indulging in slow-wave sleep.
The researchers played sounds in the sleepers’ right ear to further ignite the left hemisphere of their brain. This caused the participants to wake up and be more alert, compared to when sounds were played in their left ear.
On the second night, the left and right sides of the brain were virtually the same, with no difference in altertness.
So what does this mean?
Essentially, your brain’s left hemisphere ‘stands guard’ while you’re asleep, keeping watch to protect you from perceived threats.
The same occurs in many mammals and birds – half their brain sleeps while the other stays alert.
Interestingly, sleep scientists have known for some time that the first night in a new place causes us to have a disrupted sleep. So much so that researchers tend to discard data obtained from a participant’s first night in a sleep lab.
But the Brown University team wanted to dig deeper, asking: “Does sleep disturbance caused by an unfamiliar environment, that is, the first-night effect (FNE), have only negative effects?”
And for the first time ever, the team revealed that half of the human brain is able to rest while the other half is on guard.
