Does drinking coffee before bed affect sleep? The latest US study: Not true

China Daily Network, August 9 (Sun Ruonan) For most people, it seems to be a consensus that drinking coffee before bed affects sleep. However, a recent study in the United States shows that drinking coffee or tea before bed will not affect sleep quality.

According to a report by the British Independent on the 7th, American researchers from Florida Atlantic University and Harvard Medical School monitored 785 people for 5,164 days and nights, recording their caffeine, alcohol and nicotine usage, and comparing them with the participants' sleep time, sleep efficiency and waking time.

The study found that while nicotine and alcohol do disrupt sleep, caffeine does not.

Writing in the journal Sleep, Dr. Christina Spadola of Florida Atlantic University said that to date, few studies have thoroughly investigated the relationship between nighttime eating and sleep parameters.

"This study is one of the largest longitudinal studies examining the associations of nighttime alcohol, coffee and cigarette consumption with objectively measured sleep outcomes," Spadola said. "Sleep continuity was poorer in those who smoked or drank alcohol within four hours of bedtime compared with those who did not smoke or drink alcohol. We did not observe an association between caffeinated beverage consumption within four hours of bedtime and any sleep parameter."

The researchers added that the finding was a surprise to the team, but it is consistent with the results of a previous study on the effects of coffee on sleep.

For insomniacs, nicotine is the substance most closely associated with sleep disruption. The data show that on average, smoking at night will lead to an average sleep time reduction of 42.47 minutes.

Sleep expert Neil Stanley told The Independent that it is a myth that drinking coffee before bed can keep you awake at night. "Some people are very sensitive to caffeine. For these people, it is important to avoid drinking caffeinated beverages before bed. However, there is no golden rule. You just need to listen to your body. For some people, the effect of caffeine is much lower, or there may be no effect at all."

Stanley continued: “If you’ve had two shots of espresso every night for the last 40 years and you’ve just developed sleep problems, it’s definitely not the coffee that’s causing it.”

Earlier this year, another study showed that drinking two cups of coffee a day could add up to two years to a person's life expectancy.

(Editors: Dang Chaofeng and Zhou Fengmei)