A new study suggests obesity is related to sleep deprivation. Which could certainly be true if you’re spending the nights eating.According to the AP article:
Those who got less than four hours of sleep a night were 73 percent more likely to be obese than those who got the recommended seven to nine hours of rest, scientists discovered. Those who averaged five hours of sleep had 50 percent greater risk, and those who got six hours had 23 percent more.
[…] It seems “somewhat counterintuitive” that sleeping more would prevent obesity because people burn fewer calories when they’re resting, [Columbia epidemiologist James] Gangwisch said. But they also eat when they’re awake, and the effect of chronic sleep deprivation on the body’s food-seeking circuitry is what specialists think may be making the difference in obesity risks.
[…] Sleep deprivation lowers leptin, a blood protein that suppresses appetite and seems to affect how the brain senses when the body has had enough food. Sleep deprivation also raises levels of grehlin, a substance that makes people want to eat.
Sounds reasonable enough, but they lost me with those “leptin” and “grehlin” names. Those are from Narnia, aren’t they?[…] It seems “somewhat counterintuitive” that sleeping more would prevent obesity because people burn fewer calories when they’re resting, [Columbia epidemiologist James] Gangwisch said. But they also eat when they’re awake, and the effect of chronic sleep deprivation on the body’s food-seeking circuitry is what specialists think may be making the difference in obesity risks.
[…] Sleep deprivation lowers leptin, a blood protein that suppresses appetite and seems to affect how the brain senses when the body has had enough food. Sleep deprivation also raises levels of grehlin, a substance that makes people want to eat.
Of course, pondering this (and trying to think for a capper for this entry) will keep me up too late…resulting, as shown, in my overeating tomorrow. But then again couldn’t I counteract that if I just eat something heavy then fall asleep after? To think…my nap after Thanksgiving dinner might be healthy!
