Sleep your way to weight loss

Have you ever endured a restless or sleepless night only to find the following day was filled with poor eating decisions and the sensation of a constant, unquenchable appetite?

It turns out the two experiences may be directly related. Understanding the correlation can help you to live healthier and lose weight.

According to recent studies at both The University of Chicago and Stanford University, subjects who were deprived of the recommended 8 hours of restful sleep displayed high levels of the hormone Ghrelin, and correspondingly low levels of the hormone Leptin, the following day. These hormones are the opposite sides of the same coin affecting appetite and hunger response.

Ghrelin:

A lack of restful sleep creates an elevate level of Ghrelin. When we experience high levels of Ghrelin, our bodies receive the message that we are hungry. In addition, high levels of Ghrelin have been shown to affect the types of foods we seek out. You are more likely to choose high caloric foods in an effort to satisfy a high Ghrelin response. For example, you may find yourself choosing a hamburger and fries over a salad or fruit snack.

High Ghrelin has a doubly negative effect. It has also been shown to signal our metabolic rate to slow down. It essentially tells the body to save stored energy as though the body were fasting. As such, the calories the body would otherwise expend at rest are held back and tucked away in our tissues.

Leptin:

The restful sleep deprived subjects were also shown to have displayed low levels of Leptin. Leptin is a hormone that i) tells the body when it is full; and, ii) tells it to stop storing energy as fat. If our levels of Leptin are low, the body will want to both: continue consuming; and, continue to store the food energy on the belly, the hips, and anywhere else fat can be stored.

A Finnish study conducted over a 7 year period, with over 7,000 participants, found that women who were “short sleepers” (those who experience only 5.5 to 6 hours of sleep per night or less) were more likely to experience major weight gain (defined as 11 lbs or more).

In order to help balance your levels of Ghrelin and Leptin, and to help your body regulate your metabolic rate, make sure that you achieve the goal of 8 hours of restful sleep. Chances are, you will see the results when you get on the scale.

For help achieving a restful sleep pattern, check out our blog post 5 Simple Daily Steps for a Healthier You