Weight Loss and Sleep: Sleep Deprivation Causes Hunger

If you want to lose weight, the best thing you can do is get enough sleep. Studies have shown that women who don’t get enough sleep generally weigh more than women who do get enough sleep. Of course, there are going to be overweight women who sleep 7 and 8 hours a night. I know from my own experience that when I am sleep deprived I don’t lose weight. In fact, I may gain weight when I don’t get enough sleep.

There isn’t a clear reason why people that sleep less don’t lose as well as those who sleep 7 or 8 hours a night. It is believed that the basal metabolic rate (BMR) changes. Your BMR number represents the number of calories you use up when you sleep. When you don’t get enough sleep you can store fat easier because your glucose levels can be higher, which stimulates the body to store fat.

When you don’t get enough sleep you get hungry during the long hours of wakefulness because your body gets depleted of the hormone called “leptin,” which gives you the urge to crave food. You can also be at risk for diabetes, due to insulin resistance. Not only does lack of sleep interfere with your body’s metabolism, going without sleep can put stress on your heart. A result of many sleepless nights can lead to high blood pressure.

Have you ever had a sleepless night and you got the munchies? It happens to all of us at one time or another. There is a good reason for it,because the hormone, leptin, is the hormone that tells you when you have had enough to eat. Sleep deprivation causes that hormone to decrease, and therefore you start eating with wild abandon. I know I do. There is another hormone called “Ghrelen” is the hormone that tells us when we are hungry. When you don’t get enough sleep Ghrelen increases and leptin decreases. When the balance of Ghrelen and Leptin are disrupted, you get that craving feeling. Have you ever felt, “I’m hungry for something, but I don’t know what it is?” Chances are your hormones are out of balance.

For your hormones to stay in balance, you should get at least 7 hours of sleep a night. There are many people who rarely get a good night’s sleep. We become accustomed to it. Many of us have jobs that keep us working for 14 to 18 hours a day. I am one of those that work at least 18 hours a day. I was burning the candle at both ends for a few days, and I was a mess emotionally, and I was out of sync with my hunger. Now, I do still work long hours, but I let myself sleep until I am ready to wake up. I no longer push myself to get up at 7:30 in the morning. If I go to bed at 4 in the morning, I might not get up until 11 in the morning, so I am making sure I do get my rest. Since I have been sleeping longer, I have noticed my body going back into sync again. I’m no longer hungry.

If you have trouble losing weight, look at your sleep pattern. Also look at your appetite while you are up when you should be sleeping. Take a total assessment of how you feel when you are sleep deprived. You may be able to stop munching so much if you get enough sleep. You may discover a weight loss after several nights of good sleep.

Source:

http://www.thedietchannel.com/Weight-Loss-and-Sleep.htm