Could Lack of Sleep be Causing You to Gain Weight? Study Says Yes.

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Can’t figure out why you are gaining weight—or why dropping these extra pounds is so hard? If you are trying to reduce your calorie intake, more sleep might help. According to a recently concluded study, sleep deprivation has been linked to a tendency to eat more.

The research was done at King’s College in London. It was not a single study, but rather a meta analysis that took into consideration various studies in order to create more powerful results.

The analysis was based on 11 different studies. Anyway, the experts involved in the study were able to draw the conclusion that sleep deprivation resulted in greater calorie consumption.

Lack of Sleep

But to give their study a better foundation, they took into consideration the effects of sleep deprivation on energy consumption. What they discovered was that partial sleep deprivation affects how much we eat. People who did not get enough sleep ended up eating more calories than they should have.

A total of 172 participants were involved in the study. Some of the subjects had only between 3 and a half hours and 5 and a half hours in bed. The other subjects spent between 7 and 12 hours in bed. In the end, it was discovered that those who suffered some form of sleep deprivation consumed 385 more calories than those who had enough sleep.

But in addition to eating more, the sleep deprived people also made worse diet choices. Their foods contained more fat. There was also a reduction in protein intake, but no change to their carbohydrate intake. The increased nutritional imbalance only served to compound the added calorie intake problem sleep deprivation causes, making such people more predisposed to experiencing weight gain.

So, extra calories are not the only culprits, but an imbalance in the calorie intake as well. This information proves that lack of enough sleep could be one of the reasons for experiencing weight gain.

Science has shown again and again that sleep deprivation can sabotage your weight loss efforts. “When you feel sleepy, you are running on low energy, and you are tempted to skip the gym and you are tempted to reach for a cup of coffee, a doughnut, or a bag of potato chips or other comfort foods that will give you a temporary shot of energy”, explains biologist Matt of Lodlois—a site that reviews two clinically studied weight loss programs: Weight Watchers and Nutrisystem.

Therefore, with a prolonged sleep deprivation scenario, the problem could result in serious weight problems. In fact, a different study involving 26 people showed that lack of sleep made the brain more responsive to food, which might explain why lack of sleep could result in an increased urge to eat.

Besides, other studies have also shown that sleep deprivation causes the way the body regulates the feelings of hunger and satiety to change. So, if you are regularly exceeding your daily calorie intake, you should consider how much sleep you are getting. Lack of enough sleep could be making you eat more food and also eat less healthy.

If you suffer from insomnia, yoga can help you sleep better and longer. The combination of deep breathing and physical movement will lower your stress and give you a restful night.

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