We’ve heard a lot about the link between sleep deprivation and weight gain lately. In fact, a number of studies have observed that folks who snooze five hours or less are more prone to putting on weight and developing weight related diseases. Now researchers at the Uppsala University in Sweden may be prying open a crack in those results.
Led by Dr. Christian Benedict, researchers recently conducted a study to identify the exact mechanisms that cause us to pack on pounds when we miss getting our sleep. The study involved 14 male university students who were put through a series of sleep conditions such as curtailed sleep, no sleep, and normal sleep over several days. They were also measured for changes in how much they ate, their blood sugar, hormone levels and indicators of metabolic rate.
What researchers found was that even one night of missed sleep slowed the metabolism of the subjects the next morning. Their body energy expenditure was also reduced by 5 to 20% and blood sugar levels were higher. However, the subjects did not consume more food during the following day.
So is sleep deprivation linked to weight gain, or not?
Dr. Sanford Auerbach of the Sleep Disorders Center at Boston Medical Center said, “It is tempting to link sleep health and obesity, but sleep deprivation is complicated.” Medications and other conditions can influence sleep too. Based on the findings from this recent study one could theorize that we adapt to sleep deprivation and how we adapt could contribute to obesity. Of course, Dr. Auerbach pointed out that it’s not clear how chronic sleep loss influences hormone levels, which also affect weight gain.
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