Getting too little sleep or not spending enough time in rapid eye movement, or REM sleep, is associated with being overweight among children and teens, a new study found.
“Our results demonstrated that the short sleep-obesity
association may be attributed to reduced REM sleep,” said Dr. Xianchen Liu of
Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic in
The researchers studied 335 children and adolescents aged 7 to 17 for three consecutive nights. Weight and height were measured to calculate body mass index (BMI). 45 participants (13.4 percent) were overweight, while 49 (14.6 percent) were at risk for becoming overweight. They looked at total sleep time, time spent in REM, that is usually associated with dreaming, and time it took to fall asleep.
Those who were overweight slept about 22 minutes less per night compared to those that were at normal weight. They also had shorter REM sleep, less eye activity during REM sleep and a longer wait before the first REM period.
After the researchers adjusted factors such as the children’s demographics, psychiatric diagnoses and other factors, those who slept one hour less were twice as likely to be overweight, and those with an hour less of REM sleep were three times more likely to be overweight.
Although the precise mechanisms are
currently under investigation, the association between short sleep duration and
overweight may be attributed to the interaction of behavioural and biological changes
as a result of sleep deprivation, Dr. wrote Dr. Xianchen Liu, of the Western
Psychiatric Institute and Clinic in
Sleep loss causes changes in hormone levels that may affect hunger, and less sleep also means a person has more waking hours in which to eat, researchers said. It also gives a person more time in which to eat. They are tired and sleepy during the day, which may make them less likely to exercise.
The researchers say doctors, schools and families should step in to ensure that children get enough sleep. Earlier this year, a study conducted by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that people who sleep less than six hours or more than the nine recommended each night are exposed to a higher risk of obesity, physical inactivity, smoking and alcohol drinking. As regards obesity, 33% of the individuals who slept under six hours were overweight, alike 26% of those who oversleep. Normal sleepers had the lowest rate, 22%.
Furthermore, the number of adults who have overweight problems rose with approximately 2 percent between 2005 and 2007. In the case of young individuals, 19.1 percent of men and women were obese. Obesity is also a significant risk factor for a number of chronic diseases such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes.
Obesity is one of the main health problems is the world, with 400 million obese people classified by the World Health Organisation around the world.
As general advice, it is important that any individual sleeps between seven and nine hours per night, with variations determined by age and daily activity.