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Episode details

Radio 4,21 Oct 2025,28 mins

Should you take naps?

What's Up Docs?

Available for over a year

Welcome to What’s Up Docs?, the podcast where doctors and identical twins Chris and Xand van Tulleken tackle the confusion around every aspect of our health and wellbeing. In this episode, they’re asking, what’s the deal with naps? Some people nod off in minutes, while others can’t manage it at all. So why is napping so different from person to person? Is it actually good for us? Is there a “right” way to nap - and should we all be making time for it? Also, they uncover what’s really happening inside the brain when we drift off. To help answer these questions, they’re joined once again by Russell Foster, Professor of Circadian Neuroscience at the University of Oxford. If you want to get in touch, you can email us at [email protected] or WhatsApp us on 08000 665 123. Presenters: Drs Chris and Xand van Tulleken Guest: Professor Russell Foster Producer: Maia Miller-Lewis Executive Producer: Rami Tzabar and Jo Rowntree Editor: Kirsten Lass Researcher: Grace Revill Tech Lead: Reuben Huxtable Social Media: Leon Gower Digital Lead: Richard Berry Composer: Phoebe McFarlane Sound Design: Ruth Rainey At the BBC: Assistant Commissioner: Greg Smith Commissioning Editor: Rhian Roberts A Loftus Media production for BBC Radio 4

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