Sleep - How Much Makes You Fat?
March 7, 2008 by Liz Harper
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There have been a number of studies in the past which have associated short sleep duration with obesity and weight gain in children and young adults.
A recent study was conducted in Spain on a group of people over the age of 60 years.
The sleep duration of the 3576 people was recorded over 2001 - 2003. It has found that those who slept under 5 hours had a higher frequency of obesity (BMI >30) and severe obesity (BMI >35) than those who slept 7 hours.
It was also noticed that those sleeping 8-9 hours had a higher rate of obesity.
The study also took note of weight gains that were greater than 5kg from 2001-2003. It was found that women who slept less than 5 hrs or 8-9 hours had a higher prevalence of weight gains >5kg than those who only slept 7 hrs.
So what does all this mean?
Well for one, maybe it’s time to drag out the alarm clocks…or set your mobile phone alarm for 7.5 hrs when you go to bed….speaking of that - message for my husband Kel….PLEASE change your mobile phone alarm ring tone! (I used to love Robbie Williams - now I’ve grown to dread hearing him)
I’d love to hear about your experiences with sleep and it’s effect on your body. Do you get enough sleep? Have you put on weight but you haven’t changed your diet or food intake?
I know that I noticed a difference after having my daughter… for the first two years I was getting <4hrs sleep a night (reflux baby and allergy child) and as soon as I got my first 6-7hrs sleep I began losing weight - and nothing else had changed.
Please feel free to share and add your comments below.
Source - American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
Image credit – Dusty Allen Smith (Flickr)
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