(22-09-07) Lack of sleep linked to obesity

Boys are sleeping less than girls and this lack of shut-eye is translating into fat, a study of Australian kids shows. A survey of 1,000 Adelaide children presented to an international sleep conference has found that boys aged five to 10 spend significantly less time in bed than girls of the same age.
While both sexes were going to bed at the same time, boys were waking up much earlier on both school days and weekends.
And this less time in bed seems to be directly linked to weight gain, according to weight and sleep data collected from parents at 23 schools.
"We found that the males that slept less on school days tended to be heavier than the girls who slept less," said lead researcher Sarah Biggs, from the University of Adelaide.
"We're not exactly sure why but it might be that boys are falling short of a critical period of sleep that could be impacting on weight."
The relationship between sleep and weight is still being explored but researchers believe kids who sleep less may gain weight because they have more time to eat or because they're too tired to exercise.
A third theory gaining momentum is that lack of sleep triggers changes in two key metabolic hormones - the brain hormone leptin, and ghrelin, made by the stomach - that have a knock-on effect on weight.
"If people sleep less, they get elevated levels of these hormones and then are more likely to crave high fat carbohydrates," Ms Biggs said.
But she warned that extra sleep was not a "quick fix" for weight problems, with the data showing oversleeping was itself connected to a higher body mass index (BMI).
"Obviously there's a complex interplay involving diet, exercise, lifestyle and other social factors that all impact on weight gain."
The research was presented at the WorldSleepO7 congress in Cairns, which began today.

Source: www.smh.com.au

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