Inadequate sleep can lead to weight gain, diminishing the returns you expect from other strategies
Sleep is extremely important for both physical and mental heath
For some people, losing weight can be difficult. Even if they believe they are leading a healthy lifestyle, they may not be getting desirable results. While some of the methods that they follow may be beneficial, people tend to overlook an important element that is essential to lose weight effectively — that's sufficient amount of sleep. Nutritionist Lovneet Batra has shared some advice on why and how getting a good night's sleep is vital for weight loss. She said in an Instagram post that the amount of sleep one got could be just as crucial for weight loss as food and exercise. Every night, a healthy person needs at least 7 hours of sleep.
“Sleep is like nutrition for the brain. If you're trying to lose weight, the amount of sleep you get may be just as important as your diet and exercise. So, if your goal is to lose fat, skipping sleep is like poking sticks in your bicycle wheels,” Lovneet said.
That said, inadequate sleep can lead to weight gain, diminishing the returns you expect from other fat-losing strategies. Here's how:
-- Inadequate sleep can cause release of additional cortisol — the stress hormone — and can stimulate hunger, thereby increasing your weight.
-- It interferes with the body's ability to metabolize carbohydrates and causes high blood levels of glucose, which leads to higher insulin levels and greater body-fat storage. Insulin sensitivity drops by more than 30 percent, she added.
-- Not having adequate sleep at night drives down leptin levels, which causes the body to crave carbohydrates.
-- And finally, it reduces growth hormone levels — a protein that helps regulate the proportions of fat and muscle in the body.
“Thus, a lack of (adequate) sleep is linked to poorer food choices, increased hunger and calorie intake, decreased physical activity, and ultimately, weight gain,” Lovneet said.
Check her post here:
On the ways to improve sleep quality, Lovneet Batra says people need to fix their sleep schedule, avoid blue light before bedtime, and opt for relaxation techniques like meditation, reading books, and journaling.
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