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Short sleep alters appetite

A short duration of sleep may help in maintaining a healthy weight and appetite.

Short sleep alters appetite

A short duration of sleep may help in maintaining a healthy weight and appetite. Researchers from the University of Chicago found that healthy young men who slept only for fours hours on two consecutive nights, showed a dip in the appetite suppressing hormone and an increase in an appetite-stimulating hormone. Sleep reduction could alter the appetite-regulating hormones - leptin, which is released from fat cells and helps alert the brain that it's time to stop eating, and ghrelin, which is produced in the stomach and helps trigger hunger. Researchers studied 12 men, on two consecutive nights, who slept for only four hours each night. Sleep restriction was associated with average reductions in the appetite-suppressing hormone leptin by 18 per cent and elevations in the appetite-stimulating factor ghrelin by 28 per cent. This lead to a 24 per cent increase in hunger and the appetite was increased by 23 per cent, especially for calorie-dense foods with high carbohydrate content like sweets, chips, nuts and starchy foods like bread and pasta. The exact reasons for the hormonal changes associated with sleep deprivation are not yet known. The mechanism may have to do with a small area in the brain where neurons respond to both eating and sleeping. These neurons would be activated by sleep deprivation and stimulate ghrelin and decrease leptin. More studies are needed to test the hypothesis that sleep deprivation may thwart people's efforts to lose weight through dieting.
Annals of Internal Medicine,
December 2004
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