Does Sleep Affect Weight Loss?

In today’s society, time is of an essence. However, if it feels like there’s never enough hours in the day to complete the tasks that are on our agenda which causes stressors and makes us neglectful to our bodies. Weight is the most common topic of interest with regards to maintaining or losing weight. Did you know that the amount of sleep may play an important role in your body’s weight gain or weight loss?

The average man or woman approximately gets less than the recommended amount of sleep required which is anywhere from seven to nine hours per night. Our body needs these hours to detoxify and recharge itself for the next day or our lack of sleep can ultimately be linked to sleep deprivation. So what are some of the symptoms of sleep deprivation? Most common and typical signs are depression, fatigue, hormonal imbalance, food cravings and memory loss. Inadequate hours of sleep may cause your body to run low on energy and cause you to consume unhealthy snacks and foods. Sleep deprivation may also trigger cravings for high-calorie caffeinated drinks, sugar and carbohydrates. With this being said, this may interfere with how your body metabolizes these foods and why you may be adding on the pounds.

A lot of people may not know if they suffer from sleep deprivation. One of the things that you can do to keep record is by keeping a journal and logging in your sleep times. The moment you go to bed, if you wake up in the middle of the night (Why did you wake up? Food cravings? Did you have to use the bathroom?) And lastly when you wake up in the morning. Keep track of how many hours you are sleeping. You can even write down why it may have taken you a long time to fall asleep (example: stressed out about work or upcoming projects, financial issues). Over the next few weeks, you can do some research and find the underlying problem that may be causing your lack of sleep. Once you find out what it is that may be bothering you, try correcting those issues and see if you notice a change in your mood and energy levels.

So what are some things that you can attribute to make a better nights rest? First, try falling asleep in a quiet, dark room. Don’t watch tv. Keep your electronics further away from your nightstand if possible. If you must keep your phone nearby, try changing the blue light on the screen to a dimmer yellowish tint that may help you fall asleep faster.  There are several applications available for your phone to help control the blue light background.  Second, make the effort to fall asleep at the same time every single night, including weekends. You will want to avoid taking naps during the day as this may cause you to stay awake longer when the nighttime routine arrives. Third, watch what you may eat at night like consuming a sugary snack and/or caffeine beverages. The amount of sugar that you intake can actually spike your blood sugar levels which will then keep you awake longer or even cause you to wake up in the middle of the night. If you must eat before you go to bed, try eating a small healthy snack that will help stabilize your blood sugar and keep you full at night.

It may seem like these small changes may not contribute to anything but in reality it may help you sleep and feel better! Overall, getting a good nights rest will help you metabolize your food better, properly detoxify your bodies organs, help with painting cognitive functions as well as a healthy functioning immune system. So try putting these habits to work and see if you notice a difference in your health!