The Science Behind Brain Farts

I have been known to have a brain fart or two from time to time, but after reading this article, I don't feel so bad.

Parts of your brain may actually be napping while you’re awake, and you don’t even realize it. A new study from the University of Wisconsin-Madison may help to explain why you have “brain farts” like losing your keys or accidentally driving through a red light.

Researchers used probes to measure neuron activity in sleep-deprived rats and found that parts of their brains went offline sporadically despite “brain waves still showing a wakeful state,” says lead researcher Chiara Cirelli, M.D., Ph.D., a psychiatry professor at Wisconsin’s School of Medicine and Public Health.

As a consequence of the brief “neuron naps”, the rats’ motor performance decreased by 20 percent when performing simple tasks. That might not sound like a big drop if you’re doing something inconsequential, like playing a game with friends, but if you were “a flight controller or pilot, a 20 percent decrease in efficiency is a big deal,” says Cirelli. And it doesn’t take long to see this decreased efficacy. While the rats were kept awake for four hours, “the human equivalent would probably be less than one night of sleep deprivation,” she says.

But here’s some good news: Brain farts won’t happen if you get the sleep you need, Cirelli says. (Typically that’s about 6-8 hours per night.) “Local sleep,” the stage where your brain takes a quick nap while you’re awake, happens mostly after sleep deprivation. The longer you’re deprived of zzz’s, the more mistakes you make. “The scary part is that you don’t see this phenomenon of single brain cells going offline since our eyes aren’t closing and we’re still performing tasks,” Cirelli says.

So what’s the best way to prevent your brain from zoning out? Simple: Head to bed. “We don’t have a substitute for sleep. Sleep is the only cure. But in real life, when you need to stay awake, be very conscious of this problem, of the fact that there are consequences even if you don’t realize it,” says Cirelli. If you can’t avoid the situation, either try to take a nap during the day (researchers suggest aiming for about 40 minutes) or have some caffeine. (Read about The Health Benefits of Caffeine for suggested doses.)

via Men's Health - The Science Behind Brain Farts.