A bad night’s sleep can leave you feeling lousy, but even worse? Inadequate sleep is linked to health problems including heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and depression. We’ve all heard how important it is to get good quality sleep, and enough of it, but new research finds another reason to make sure you’re getting plenty of shut-eye.
A new small-scale study from the American Heart Association finds that getting regular, uninterrupted sleep could help those trying to drop a few pounds. Researchers looked at 125 adults who were obese or overweight and were involved in a year-long weight-loss program. Their sleep habits were measured to see if there was any correlation between having a consistent healthy sleep schedule and meeting their weight goals.
Study authors found that better sleep health is associated with a higher rate of attending group meetings, a better job of sticking to caloric intake goals and getting in more exercise over time. The research suggests that those who slept better may have had more energy for exercise and focus to attend sessions and stay committed to meeting their weight loss goals. This is just one more reason to strive for those seven to nine hours of good quality sleep every night.
Source: Nine.com
Scott's Thoughts:
- Who are these people who get nine hours of quality sleep a night? And how do I become one of them?
- I fall asleep fast but have trouble staying asleep sometimes. Waking up at 2 to 4 am. Wonder if it was because I was on morning radio for 20 years getting up at 4am.
- I am not sure that sleeping in on the weekends can make up for regular sleep.