Sleep deprivation in women may cause weight gain

A new study suggests that sleep deprivation not only makes you tired but may be an independent predictor of future weight gain in women.

The team at Cleveland’s Case Western Reserve University studied over 68,000 healthy women over a period of 16 years.

The study found that women who reported sleeping 5 or 6 hours per night gained more weight than those who got 7 hours of sleep. Major weight gain (about 15 kg) was most common in women that reported sleeping 5 hours a night.

In a previous study, researches found that short sleepers have an impaired ability to dispose of glucose using insulin, which may put them on the pathway to obesity. Sleep loss was also found to affect many biological processes, including thyroid function and levels of the stress hormone cortisol.

There is a growing awareness among sleep, metabolic, cardiovascular, and diabetes researchers that insufficient sleep could be leading to a multitude of disorders.

Remember: Not getting enough sleep may lead to future weight gain. If you are having trouble sleeping, discuss this with your GP.

Source: American Thoracic Society International Conference, San Diego. May 19 – 24, 2006.