Sleep more to slim down, scientists say

by azer | April 4, 2008 at 06:05 pm

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Over the past many years there has been a steady stream of research that has concluded, over and over again, that lots of things go wrong when we don't get enough sleep.

Here's a fact that many people don't know: The most stressful thing you can do to your body is to simply not get enough sleep. The simple act of choosing to stay awake longer has been shown, repeatedly, to do all kinds of damage to the body - damage that accumulates and, over time, makes it difficult to get a good nights sleep!

The medical community has come to recognize that many men choose to have diabetes and heart attacks. The various abuses that we commit against ourselves are so well known now that we are told cardiovascular disease is often self-inflicted.

Here is another study that looks specifically at the hormones involved in the regulation of hunger and metabolism - and comes to the conclusion, again, that lack of sleep can mess-up those bodily functions, too:

While poor eating habits and lack of exercise clearly play a role in the global rise of obesity, recent data indicates that lack of sleep may also be a factor, and one that is often under-estimated.

This study identifies the specific hormones and their influences on the body:

Grehlin makes people hungry, slows metabolism and decreases the body's ability to burn body fat, and leptin, a protein hormone produced by fatty tissue, regulates fat storage.

"We have shown that less sleep (two four-hour nights) caused an 18 percent loss of appetite-cutting leptin and a 28 percent increase of appetite-causing grehlin," she said.

Such hormonal changes made people hungry for foods heavy in fats and sugars such as chips, biscuits, cakes and peanuts, she added.

Many men seem to brag about not sleeping. It seems to be some kind of strange accomplishment or a source of pride - but it shouldn't be. Not getting enough sleep damages the body and reduces productivity. It's not just that far less work is accomplished when the body is under attack - intellectual capacity is diminished as well. Young men don't notice it so much. A young body can fight to maintain basic functionality for a long time before it starts to lose the battle for survival. As we get older, though, the damage begins to show.

The punch line is simply this: The best way to get more work done is to spend a few minutes learning about Time Management and practicing what we've learned. Those of us who actually take the time to write out a monthly schedule are surprised by what we find. First and foremost: it's not as easy as it sounds. It takes time to get an accurate picture of everything we do. Then, once we've got an accurate picture we start to wonder why it just doesn't make any sense? The answer is that we very often agree to do things that don't make sense - but we can't see the consequences until we take the time to write everything down. Once the details are written down it becomes possible to find simple ways to adjust the schedule. Slowly but surely, we start to use our time more efficiently. At some point, everything will suddenly seem so much easier!

It really is shocking sometimes to be able to go from not having enough time to get basic things done - to suddenly being able to get everything done and have plenty of time to relax along the way. The principles required to accomplish this are so simple and easy that a child can learn and practice them. Inexpensive books on Time Management are readily available in all bookstores.

Life is so much better when we take the time to do things right. Why not Just turn off the Stupid Box and enjoy a quiet night of sleep? It's difficult at first; very difficult especially if we've done too much damage and things aren't working properly. Still, the benefits are waiting to be enjoyed: the more you practice, the easier it gets.