In a new study, researchers found the sounds you wake up to could be affecting how groggy and clumsy you are in the morning.
The finding suggests melodic alarms could improve alertness levels, with harsh alarm tones linked to increased levels of morning grogginess.
It could have important implications for anyone who needs to perform at their peak soon after waking, such as shift workers and emergency first responders.
The research was conducted by a team at RMIT University.
Morning grogginess— or sleep inertia—was a serious problem in our 24-hour world.
If people don’t wake properly, their work performance can be degraded for periods up to four hours, and that has been linked to major accidents.
The research tested 50 participants, using a specially designed online survey that enables them to remotely contribute to the study from the comfort of their own home.
Each person logged what type of sound they used to wake up, and then rated their grogginess and alertness levels against standardized sleep inertia criteria.
They found that melodic alarms could be more effective to improve alertness than a startling ‘beep beep beep’ alarm.
The team says a harsh ‘beep beep beep’ might work to disrupt or confuse our brain activity when waking, while a more melodic sound like the Beach Boys ‘Good Vibrations’ or The Cure’s ‘Close to Me’ may help people transition to a waking state in a more effective way.
This is particularly important for people who might work in dangerous situations shortly after waking, like firefighters or pilots, but also for anyone who has to be rapidly alert, such as someone driving to the hospital in an emergency.
The new research could help contribute to the design of more efficient interventions for people to use on their own devices to wake up properly.
The lead author of the study is RMIT doctoral researcher Stuart McFarlane.
The study is published in PLoS One.
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