Want to Lose Weight? Get Some Sleep!
As a chiropractor, I’m very interested in the overall health of my patients. As part of a healthy lifestyle we discuss a nutritious diet, getting enough rest, drinking enough water, and getting regular chiropractic care, of course. And, since body weight can affect the stability and function of the musculoskeletal system, as well as impact its organic structures, I am always interested in new studies about weight issues. So, now, let me ask you this: What could be worse than feeling tired and groggy during the day after not getting enough sleep the night before? Well, craving calories, that’s what! A recent study found that normal-weight young men ate a “Big Mac’s-worth of extra calories” when they’d gotten four hours of sleep the night before compared to when they slept for eight hours.
Let’s face it, as a group, we Americans have been sleeping less and getting fatter over the past few decades. The researchers wrote in the American Journal of Clinical nutrition, “Sleep restriction could be one of the environmental factors that contribute to the obesity epidemic.” No experimental studies to date have actually looked at what happens to a normal-weight person’s eating patterns when he or she sleeps less.
To read more about this study, go to reuters.com
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