How Does Sleep Deprivation Affect Your Quick Weight Loss? August 9, 2011.

All too often I see clients who are overweight and do not know why. Once I start talking to them, their high-pressure,high-stress lifestyle seems to inhibit them from making healthy food decisions. Oftentimes, they are ‘rushing’ from meeting to meeting and must make (or so it seems) snap judgments on what to eat. When I ask them what their sleep schedule looks like, many will roll their eyes – and recount their lack of rest.

Could my clients lack of sleep have an effect of their inability to lose weight? According to the article “How Does Sleep Deprivation Affect Your Quick Weight Loss?” sleep and weight gain (or loss) is related. Here are a few quotes from the article:

“The sleep recommendation provided by the National Sleep Foundation recommends 8 hours per night. According to the CDC and a National Health Interview Survey shows that 30%  of Americans who are 30-64 years of age sleep less than 6 hours per night.

Research is showing that long term sleep loss is related to an increase in obesity and diabetes.

Partial sleep deprivation can manipulate key hormones that impact weight loss and weight gain. Lack of sleep can also affect insulin sensitivity, your appetite control and the amount of energy you expend when at rest. When these key hormones are affected it can predispose you to weight gain and obesity by causing insulin resistance.

If this resistance is to continue your pancreas becomes damaged and cannot continue to produce enough insulin.

Sleep loss may also increase your appetite and entice cravings for high carbohydrates food along with creating insulin resistance.

1 Sleepless night may increase your cortisol levels. A study of 33 men were examined 36 hours and some slept 8 hours, 4 hours of sleep and also total sleep deprivation. Those who slept 4 hours had a cortisol elevation of 37% above baseline and those who had total sleep deprivation had an elevation of 45% in cortisol levels.

If you spend more time awake you are more likely to eat an extra meal or two.

If you know you lack sleep then start taking steps to improve your sleeping habits such as stick to a regular bedtime, avoid alcohol before bed, try to keep your bedroom at 70 degrees or below, turn off the television when lying in bed.”

For the full article click here.