Getting Enough Sleep at Night May Just Help You Lose Weight
Eating the right foods and exercising regularly have been the hallmark of most weight management programs for the last 50 years. We are learning more and more about how other lifestyle factors affect weight such as stress, hormones, and other emotional triggers. Now it appears we can add sleep to the growing list of lifestyle factors that affect our weight. A recent study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine suggest that getting enough sleep may help with your weight loss efforts. The study found that sleep deprived volunteers (4 hours per night) had a 28% increase in a hormone called grehlin, which is an appetite stimulant. They also found an 18% decrease in leptin, a hormone that acts as an appetite suppressant, and 23% increase in overall appetite. To make matters worse the participants had an increase appetite specifically for calorie dense foods including sweets, salty and starchy foods. Although this was a small study, which will need more follow up; it is not the first to suggest how sleep affects weight. A 1999 University of Chicago study showed that sleep loss could affect the way we metabolize carbohydrates resulting in glucose intolerance and possibly leading to increased hunger and a slowed metabolism. It is also important to note that over the past 40 years, self-reported sleep duration in the U.S. has decreased by almost 2 hours according to Karine Spiegel, PhD and colleagues from University of Chicago in Illinois and overweight and obesity have been on the rise. More studies are needed to show that these results are reproducible and to demonstrate a cause and effect relationship. However, getting a good night sleep is good advice either way. There is no doubt about it that a lack of sleep interferes with our energy levels during the day and can cause us to skip our exercise routine because we are far too tired. How often has lack of sleep interfered with your activity level? This alone is good enough reason to add a good night's sleep (8-9 hours) to your weight management plan. © Meri Raffetto, 2005 Meri Raffetto is a Registered Dietitian and a recognized professional in the area of nutrition and wellness. She is the owner of Real Living Nutrition Services providing interactive online weight management programs. Sign up for her free monthly newsletter to receive nutrition tips, healthy recipes, and more at http://www.reallivingnutrition.com.
MORE RESOURCES:
Library offers beginner's yoga classLog Cabin Democrat, AR - 16 hours agoA beginner's yoga class is being held weekly at the Faulkner County Library. The class is on-going, meeting from 7 to 8 pm on Tuesdays. ... |
Yoga event to raise money for animal shelterMinot Daily News, ND - 2 hours agoBy JILL SCHRAMM, Staff Writer, jschramm@minotdailynews.com Two Minot yoga instructors have teamed up with the Souris Valley Animal Shelter to share the ... |
Defining yoga, one style at a timeCommon Ground, CA - 15 hours agoThat’s the philosophy that inspired Jivamukti Yoga founders Sharon Gannon and David Life, who developed the style in their Manhattan studio in 1984. ... |
Living Your Yoga: Seated pose brings tranquilityWashington Examiner, DC - 8 hours agoBy Kimberly Wilson Andrew Harnik/Examiner Welcome back to our ongoing series dedicated to living your yoga! This series explores yoga as a lifestyle through ... |
Supatha Yoga celebrates anniversaryScarlet Scuttlebutt, NJ - 2 hours agoThis dream included sharing her lifelong passion for yoga, a practice that saved her life and has kept her healthy for more than 35 years. ... |
Yoga - Google News
|
 |
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
The Crazy Amazing Diet Maker
This past Christmas Season, as most of us stuffed our faces full of turkey and pies, a well respected weight loss expert from WebMD made some crazy remarks about ending obesity. Needless to say, the response to his rhetoric, despite the Christmas Season, was naughty not nice.
Dropping The Carbs - The Pros and Cons of Ketogenic Dieting
We must all now be familiar with the Atkins Diet. Of all of the 'trend' diets that move through our popular culture, none has caused as much interest or controversy.
Why Weight Loss Products Dont Work
Did you know that less than 2% of dieters lose weight and then manage to keep it off?YOU ARE NOT TO BLAME, if you've tried many different diets and weight loss products and have still been unable to lose the weight. Your dieting efforts have been condemned to failure right from the start.
Learning How to Become a Good Loser
The Quest to Reach Your Ideal WeightIt was late in the day and my next patient I would be meeting for the first time. As the woman entered my office upon introduction I was surprised by her response to my question of how she heard about me.
8 Ways to Rev up Your Metabolism
Yes it's true- and so unfair. As we get older weight gain begins to creep up on us.
Simple Summer Fat Attack!
Summer is about to be in full swing, and it's that time when everyone wants to look impressive in their "lack" of clothing. While I can't promise you that you'll achieve a fitness model body, I can at least give you some simple but important tips in achieving a leaner physique.
A New Option for Weight Loss Surgery
These days, Jennifer Secrist has little interest in idle activities. The 23-year-old loves to rock climb, hike, ride her mountain bike, and do almost anything that gets her outside and moving.
Free Tips on Losing Weight
Here are a few free tips on losing weight that really work. Starting with your behavior, you need to start thinking thin and realizing that weight loss begins in your mind.
How to Lose Weight: Food for Thought
When it comes to weight loss, most of us would like to engage in what psychologists call "magical thinking." We'd like to believe that some easy trick or ritual would allow us to shed pounds while eating anything we liked.
Pathological Eating Disorders and Poly-Behavioral Addiction
When considering that pathological eating disorders and their related diseases now afflict more people globally than malnutrition, some experts in the medical field are presently purporting that the world's number one health problem is no longer heart disease or cancer, but obesity. According to the World Health Organization (June, 2005), "obesity has reached epidemic proportions globally, with more than 1 billion adults overweight - at least 300 million of them clinically obese - and is a major contributor to the global burden of chronic disease and disability.
Belly Fat: Enough of That! One Probable Cause of Excess Abdominal Fat
Disclaimer: I am not a doctor; nor do I play one on TV. As a matter of fact, I don't even watch the actors, who play the doctors on TV.
The True Weight Loss Approach - Five Step Common Sense Plan!
Some of you will not like what I have to say, even though it is the truth. And that may be where the problem of American's health problems lies.
The Right Way to Eat for Better Health and Weight Loss
Did you know that how and when you eat is important for good health?For most of your life, you probably have eaten breakfast, lunch and dinner. Now depending on your eating habits, this may be okay.
Gastro-Physics And Dietary Anti-Matter
Do a little people-watching, next time you're in the grocery line. There's always someone with a cart, bulging with every conceivable kind of diet food.
Staying Toned After Weight Loss
Staying Toned After Weight Loss----------------------------------------Following significant weight loss, it is vital to have an exercise routine to keep your muscles firm and help to tighten the skin. One of the biggest drawbacks to significant weight loss is the flabby skin that is visible that often can take months to disappear.
The Band Fill--Adjusting Your LapBand
A fill is nothing to be worried about. The actual procedure takes only about 15 minutes.
Fitness Resolutions
The holidays are now officially over and it's time to get back on track! January 1st is the day we all get to start over. A time to make the changes in our lives that we've wanted to make but got sidetracked along the way.
The Jack LaLanne Diet - Are You Tough Enough?
There's no way you can separate the Jack LaLanne diet from the Jack LaLanne lifestyle. And anyone who knows anything about this undisputed Godfather of fitness knows that his lifestyle is definitely not for the faint hearted.
Obesity and Weight Loss - Muscle and the Importance of Low Body Fat!
Today you have a good chance of getting diabetes or becoming obese or both. And if you do, then chances are you will be in for a long life filled with pain, discomfort and little quality in your life.
The Ultimate Weight Loss Attitude
We in the diet and exercise industry have our own opinions on what diets work and which ones are just sales gimmicks. This can be very discouraging to you the consumer.
|
