Of Sleep Duration and Weight Gain

Filed in archive Sleep Disorders , Studies , Weight Loss on April 7, 2008

As of late, I have been surprising people because I lost too much weight (some 35 lbs!) and they barely recognize me.





However, in the last few weeks, I have been taking afternoon naps that last up to 4 hours. Well, that's how I've been spending my offline hours!

At the back of my minds, there is this nagging thought that I'm gonna get back all those lost lbs and more if I keep on doing what I do recently. But what the heck?! I'm gonna rest and sleep my afternoons of! And so I did - the weight too are starting to pack up little by little.

I really do not care. But then it is scientifically true that Short, Long Sleep Duration Is Associated With Future Weight Gain In Adults - as is the title of a new report.

Both short and long sleeping times predict an increased risk of future body weight and fat gain in adults, according to a new study. The study, authored by Jean-Philippe Chaput, of Laval University in Quebec, Canada, focused on 276 adults between 21-64 years of age, whose body composition measurements and self-reported sleep duration were determined. Changes in fatty indices were compared between short (five to six hours), average (seven to eight hours) and long (nine to 10 hours) duration sleeper groups.

According to the results, after adjustment for age, sex, and baseline body mass index, short duration sleepers gained 1.98 kg more and long duration sleepers gained 1.58 kg more than did average duration sleepers over six years.

Short and long duration sleepers were 35 percent and 25 percent more likely to experience a 5 kg weight gain, respectively, as compared with average duration sleepers over six years. The risk of developing obesity was elevated for short and long duration sleepers as compared with average duration sleepers, with 27 percent and 21 percent increases in risk, respectively.

The point really is, if you want to gain some weight, then you gotta sleep. ;-)

Read the full report from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.