Sleep to Support Weight Loss
The following is an excerpt from Dr. Maggie’s eBook “5 Things You Can Do Today To Manage Weight” (2020).
We know sleep is important. It can affect our brain functions like reflexes; we are told not to drive while sleepy to avoid accidents. We can think better when we have more sleep. We get crabby when we are tired. But did you know it will affect your weight? Consistent loss of sleep was associated with a 70% risk of becoming obese and harder to lose weight.
Listening to Your Signals
In the research led by Drs. Erin Hanlon and Eve Van Cauter at the University of Chicago; found one of the areas of the brain that was activated when we lose 4 hours of sleep. It’s called the endocannabinoid system (eCB system). This system affects the brain’s motivation and reward system, as well as the regulation of appetite and energy levels.
The eCB is most well known for being activated by the chemicals found in marijuana. So, trip these circuits and you will have the munchies. They also found the type of foods the participants chose were less healthy when the eCB was activated. This is one possible reason why it’s harder to say no to snacking and unhealthy food when you’re tired. I learned this for myself as I went through Metabolic Balance®. Because of how the program is set up, my habits with food were very apparent. I discovered I eat when I’m tired. I knew I ate when emotionally stressed out, but the physical stress didn’t occur to me. Now when I get the munchies in the evening, I know it’s time to go to bed.
Your Brain Chemistry
Other research has shown that getting less than seven hours of sleep changes the chemicals in your brain that tells you, you are full (leptin) or hungry (ghrelin). It changes how you expend energy during the day and with exercise. Because you’re tired you are less likely to engage in any physical movement. Making us hungrier and less satisfied with what we eat as well as choosing food that is less healthy.
This doesn’t just happen to adults. A study of children aged 5-9 showed children with sleep apnea ate fewer fruits and veggies and 2.2 times more fast food. They were also 4.2 times less likely to be involved in organized sports.
Your Quality of Sleep
The cause of sleep deprivation can be as simple as not going to bed at a decent time. But some may have a more serious issue, such as sleep apnea. Getting evaluated by a sleep specialist for this is important. Not only do you gain weight with sleep apnea, but it’s also associated with hypoxia (low oxygen) causing issues with the brain and sympathetic nervous system (the part that is involved in fight and flight).
Stimulating the sympathetic nervous system can increase cortisol. Increased cortisol increases blood sugar, which increases insulin, which causes inflammation. Inflammation stops the breakdown of fat cells and increases the production of fat cells. It is a vicious cycle of being overweight, not sleeping, and because you’re not sleeping you’re putting on weight.
Shift work also contributes to the issues of sleep- increasing weight. So those on shift must take extra care with everything else to avoid weight gain and other health issues. One way to address this is by creating a bedtime routine.
Your Bedtime Routine
When I say bedtime routine, I mean like the one we had as children. At a certain time, each night we would get on our PJs, brush our teeth, have a story read, and some snuggle time. But as adults, we don’t have a bedtime or parents insist we go to bed. We have to be committed to “sleep hygiene”. The book “Sleep Smarter” by
Shawn Stevenson offers some great tips. One of the main things he talks about is being deliberate about sleep.
Create a routine. There is a difference between deliberately going to sleep and passing out from exhaustion. Part of your routine should include turning off your device one hour before bed. There are many different things you can try. Reading, meditation, listening to music, and journaling to name a few. Try one or a combination of them. Your goal is to relax.
Another thing you can do is go to bed and get up at the same time. Sleeping in total darkness is important; you don’t produce melatonin if there is light in the room. Sleeping with the light on has been shown to increase your risk of cancer. Melatonin and cortisol have an inverse relationship to each other; meaning, that as one goes down the other goes up. As you read earlier, cortisol can stop the breakdown of fat, and increase its production of it. So get a bedtime routine, and if you need a light to fall asleep to, use a timer so it goes off after you’re asleep.
by Dr. Maggie Peterson, DC, FICPA, CCWP, FtCDS
What You Can Do Today
Sleep is a critical part of your health to allow your body to rest, reset and enable it to burn fat while you sleep. With a nutrition plan specific to your body’s needs, you can optimize your sleep for your body to approach your health with a healthy balance. It isn’t all the “do” to make a difference in our health, it’s also the things we “don’t do” to be able to rest the body. To receive your eBook, “5 Things You Can Do Today To Manage Weight”, subscribe to our newsletter with the form below and book a Discovery Call to visit with us coaches about your next steps in your health journey. Read more about our author and coach, Dr. Maggie in her blog post, “Meet Dr. Maggie“.
Resources
https://www.nih.gov/news-events/nih-research-matters/molecular-ties-between-lack-sleep-weight-gain
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3632337/
http://sleepeducation.org/essentials-in-sleep/healthy-sleep-habits
https://www.cdc.gov/sleep/about_sleep/sleep_hygiene.html
https://www.sleepassociation.org/about-sleep/sleep-hygiene-tips/
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