When jolted awake by the blare of an alarm clock, it’s tempting to reach for the snooze button to catch a bit more shut-eye. In my case, “just five more minutes” is practically a morning mantra. And what’s the harm?

There’s increasing debate about your snoozing habit, and whether or not it’s silently sabotaging your morning.

On the “stop snoozing” side of the research, sleep scientist Dr. Rebecca Robbins suggests the snooze alarm may actually cost us sleep.

“That first alarm may interrupt vital stages of sleep, and anything that you might be able to get after hitting the snooze alarm is probably going to be low quality and fragmented sleep,” said Robbins, an associate scientist for the Division of Sleep and Circadian Disorders at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

The average snoozer takes

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