Three Dangers of Using Hands as a Pillow for Midday Naps
In real life, many students cannot return home for lunch and often nap by resting their heads on their arms on classroom desks. However, Professor Sun Hongyan, Director of the Institute of Youth Research at the China Youth Research Center, warns that using hands as a pillow for midday naps carries three major dangers.
Danger One: Sleeping with the head on arms compresses multiple nerves, often causing anxiety and restless sleep.
Danger Two: Pressing the eyeballs during such naps leads to temporary blurred vision afterward. Long-term practice may elevate intraocular pressure, damaging vision. Over time, this can cause eye ball enlargement, elongated axial length, resulting in high myopia, and increases the risk of glaucoma. This is especially dangerous for those with mild myopia, existing myopia, or contact lens wearers.
Danger Three: Long-term pressure on arms and face disrupts normal blood circulation and nerve conduction, causing numbness or pain in the arms and face. If ignored, this may progress to localized nerve paralysis or facial deformity.
Professor Sun advises that if one cannot go home to nap, one should try lying flat on the desk rather than sleeping with the head on arms. Also, avoid napping immediately after meals; ideal nap duration is about thirty minutes.