Army Leaders Embrace Strategic Napping To Combat Fatigue

The Army is telling soldiers to nap when they can as part of a new holistic approach to health in the military.

Army solider napping
In this Aug. 2, 2011 photo, a U.S. Army soldier catches a cat nap inside the passenger terminal at Sather Air Base in Baghdad, Iraq, while the unit waits to begin their journey home to the United States after a yearlong deployment. Maya Alleruzzo / AP
Army solider napping
In this Aug. 2, 2011 photo, a U.S. Army soldier catches a cat nap inside the passenger terminal at Sather Air Base in Baghdad, Iraq, while the unit waits to begin their journey home to the United States after a yearlong deployment. Maya Alleruzzo / AP

Army Leaders Embrace Strategic Napping To Combat Fatigue

The Army is telling soldiers to nap when they can as part of a new holistic approach to health in the military.

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For the first time in nearly a decade, the U.S. Army is updating its physical training field manual and promoting “strategic napping” for optimal soldier performance.

Reset learns more about the Army’s holistic approach to health and talks to a sleep researcher about the benefits of napping.

GUESTS: Lisa Medalie, behavioral sleep medicine specialist at University of Chicago Medicine

David Philipps, New York Times national correspondent covering veterans and the military