Important news for parents of teens: the latest headlines in the sleep literature say teens who sleep less eat more. And they aren't reaching for fruits and veggies.
It's not news to scientists who've found that people who sleep fewer than the hours their bodies need have a stronger craving for fatty foods and snacks -- all of which can send a roaring teen metabolism on vacation and open the door to weight gain and obesity.
But this latest study went a bit further to show a relationship between sleep duration and snacking, a favorite food activity for teens:
News like this doesn't bode well for the future of our children given the fact sleep is last on their list of things to do. What's more, 2.2 percent more calories from fats may not seem like a lot, but when you add it all up over time it can amount to a weighty number.
The challenge: teaching our children to establish good sleep habits, knowing that this may be part of the struggle we have in teaching healthy eating habits! Unknowingly, teens may be establishing a vicious cycle where their food choices are driven by their sleep choices.
Teenagers are likely to be saddled with body image issues. An unbalanced diet in adolescence, especially one with high fat content, has both short -- and long-term health consequences. If a lack of sleep is behind these eating habits, try a conversation about sleep, diet, and health. How much of a sacrifice would it take for them to get to bed earlier? Today's teens have many responsibilities, heavy academic loads, extracurricular activities, and the typical teen social attractions and distractions, all of which often make their list of priorities ahead of sleep Maybe you can compromise on a reasonable bedtime, try it out for a week and adjust it later.
The good news is that the importance of sleep might motivate them to make a change--much more so than insisting that they eat their broccoli and take their vitamins. If they knew that a solid start to a healthy body is just a good night's sleep away ... well, you never know. It just might be the ticket to a healthier, and maybe happier, teenager. And a healthy, happy household.
Sweet Dreams
Michael J. Breus, PhD
The Sleep Doctor™
www.thesleepdoctor.com
Follow Dr. Michael J. Breus on Twitter: www.twitter.com/thesleepdoctor
Russell Rosenberg, Ph.D: Is It Typical Teenage Behavior -- Or A Sleep Disorder?
http://nsatng.files.wordpress.com/2009/02/obese_mice.jpg?w=200&h=187
That's what a mouse that lacks leptin looks like. They're called ob/ob mice officially but in labs people call them turtle mice, the reason being that a tech has to go down every few hours to flip any that fell on their backs over, otherwise they'll die.
Does lack of sleep cause weight gain, or does weight gain interfere with sleep?
My personal observation: when I eat more and gain weight, I don't sleep as well.
If you are overweight, try losing weight, see if you don't sleep better. Going to bed hungry helps.
http://www.angrytrainerfitness.com/2010/10/ask-alfonso-night-shift-nightmare/
Not just teens, but adults can also benefit from more hours of sleep. Lack of sleep is correlated with loss of lean body mass rather than fat while dieting. The impact is even more significant to people over 40, who are losing roughly 1% lean body mass per year.
Dustin Rudolph
www.PursueAHealthyYou.com