U-shape relationship between sleep and obesity
22/02/2012
Researchers in America have found that there is a U-shape relationship between sleep and obesity, with the risk of obesity being lowest in normal (seven to eight hours per night) sleepers, and higher for those sleeping less than five hours or more than nine hours a night.
Tim Olds and Carol Maher recently discussed evidence for this relationship in ABC Science, revealing that short sleepers tend to be fatter. The mechanisms that support this belief are numerous. First of all, fat accumulation devices are driven by things such as high blood sugar levels, increased sympathetic nervous system activity and levels of leptin and ghrelin, which can all be caused, or at least exacerbated, by a lack of sleep.
Obesity has been rising exponentially around the world for the past few decades, which has been coupled with declining rates of sleep. Research has found that over the last 100 years, globally, kids have lost 75 minutes of sleep a day. This is similar in adults, who are struggling to fit sleep in against the pressures of contemporary society.
Posted by Elizabeth Mewes
