What does your brain do while you sleep? You may think it’s completely switched off, or so lost in dreamland that you’re not aware of anything around you. But your mind could be more active than you think!

A new study published in the scientific journal Current Biology has revealed a surprising ability you may not realise you possess. According to their research, your brain can actually understand and classify words while you sleep.

The experiment, conducted in Paris and Cambridge, took healthy participants and made them undergo a series of word classification tests. First, they were played a series of spoken words. Subjects were asked to press a button with their left hand if the word represented an object, and a button with their right hand if the word represented an animal. As they did so, an electroencephalogram (EEG) was used to map their brain activity, tracking their mental responses as they interpreted and classified each word.

The participants were then moved to a dark room, where they closed their eyes and continued the activity until they drifted into sleep. Once asleep, they were played a new set of spoken words in the same way. Amazingly, the EEG revealed that their brains were still undergoing the same interpretative process and classifying every word accurately (although more slowly). Of course, there were no physical responses from participants as they slept, and they appeared completely unaware of what was happening.

So what do these results mean? It seems that our brains are more active while we sleep than previously thought.

This could certainly explain some familiar sleep experiences. Have you ever noticed that saying a sleeping person’s name is more likely to wake them up than other sounds? Or that an alarm clock’s familiar ring wakes you up every morning, but other random sounds do not? While not very scientific, these casual observations have long shown that the sleeping brain is often capable of recognising (and ranking the urgency of) external sounds. Thanks to the new research, we have some evidence to support this interesting theory!

And of course, if you’re keen on harnessing your brain’s full potential, a regular sleep of 7-8 hours is always important. Are you getting enough? If a lack of comfort is stopping you, talk to Wellington Beds today. We’ll help you match the perfect bed and mattress to your individual needs and lifestyle, so get in touch now. Why wait to experience the best sleep you’ve ever had?

Sources:

http://www.bbc.com/news/health-29166466