science
Columbia Study: Six Weeks of Later Bedtimes Linked to Average One-Pound Gain
Ninety-five adults delayed their bedtime by 90 minutes for six weeks and gained an average of one pound while spending 20 more minutes sedentary each day. The findings were published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Researchers and outside experts linked the changes to disrupted appetite hormones and lower activity.
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The Independent reported that Columbia University researchers found adults who delayed their usual bedtime by 90 minutes for six weeks gained an average of one pound. Ninety-five adults who normally slept seven to eight hours took part. They followed the reduced-sleep schedule for six weeks, then returned to their regular bedtime for another six weeks.
Wrist monitors tracked sleep and activity, while researchers measured body weight, waist circumference, body composition, and fasting hormone levels in both phases. Participants spent about 20 minutes more per day being sedentary during the shorter-sleep period.
” Faris Zuraikat, assistant professor of nutritional medicine at Columbia University, said the one-pound gain observed over six weeks could become clinically meaningful if the pattern continued for a full year.
The study was published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. The Independent reported that one in five adults in the UK are not getting enough sleep and about a quarter live with obesity. Most adults need between seven and nine hours of sleep per night.
Naveed Sattar, professor of metabolic medicine at the University of Glasgow, who was not involved in the study, said insufficient sleep disrupts hormones that regulate appetite and reduces physical activity. Alex Miras, professor of medicine at Ulster University, said lack of sleep raises inflammation and insulin resistance, forcing the pancreas to produce more insulin.
