(26-03-12) Sleep restriction leads to increased activation of brain regions sensitive to food stimuli

1,2,3,4
1. Marie-Pierre St-Onge,
2. Andrew McReynolds,
3. Zalak B Trivedi,
4. Amy L Roberts,
5. Melissa Sy, and
6. Joy Hirsch
+Author Affiliations
1. 1From the Institute of Human Nutrition, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY (M-PS-O, AM, and ZBT); the New York Obesity Nutrition Research Center, St Luke's?Roosevelt Hospital, New York, NY (M-PS-O and ALR); and the Program for Imaging & Cognitive Sciences, Departments of Radiology, Neuroscience, and Psychology, Columbia University, New York, NY (MS and JH).
+Author Notes
? ↵2 The contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official view of the NCRR or NIH. Information on NCRR is available at the NCRR website. Information on Re-engineering the Clinical Research Enterprise is available at the NIH Roadmap website.
? ↵3 Supported by NIH grant 1R01HL091352-01A1 and 1 UL1 RR024156 from the National Center for Research Resources (NCRR), the NIH, and NIH Roadmap for Medical Research. The Almond Board of California provided almonds and Cabot Cheese provided cheese for the study.
? ↵4 Address correspondence to M-P St-Onge, 1090 Amsterdam Avenue, Suite 14D, New York, NY. E-mail: [email protected].
Abstract
Background: Epidemiologic evidence shows an increase in obesity concurrent with a reduction in average sleep duration among Americans. Although clinical studies propose that restricted sleep affects hormones related to appetite, neuronal activity in response to food stimuli after restricted and habitual sleep has not been investigated.
Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the effects of partial sleep restriction on neuronal activation in response to food stimuli.
Design: Thirty healthy, normal-weight [BMI (in kg/m2): 22?26] men and women were recruited (26 completed) to participate in a 2-phase inpatient crossover study in which they spent either 4 h/night (restricted sleep) or 9 h/night (habitual sleep) in bed. Each phase lasted 6 d, and functional magnetic resonance imaging was performed in the fasted state on day 6.
Results: Overall neuronal activity in response to food stimuli was greater after restricted sleep than after habitual sleep. In addition, a relative increase in brain activity in areas associated with reward, including the putamen, nucleus accumbens, thalamus, insula, and prefrontal cortex in response to food stimuli, was observed.
Conclusion: The findings of this study link restricted sleep and susceptibility to food stimuli and are consistent with the notion that reduced sleep may lead to greater propensity to overeat. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00935402.

Source: Am J Clin Nutr April 2012 vol. 95 no. 4 818-824

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