Obesity in kids linked to improper sleep
Sunday, November 05, 2006
Washington: A researcher from the University of Bristol claims that soaring levels of obesity in children may be linked to improper night sleep.
Dr Shahrad Taheri says that increased availability of computers, mobile phones, TVs and other gadgets causes decline in nightly quota of sleep, which may lead to obesity.
In an article published in the ‘Archives of Disease in Childhood’, he has suggested that these devices should be banned from children’s bedrooms to prevent them from unwanted health problems.
Dr. Taheri says that shorter sleep duration disturbs normal metabolism, which may contribute to obesity, insulin resistance, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. The laboratory data suggests that deprivation of proper sleep for even two to three nights can have profound effects on the human body.
He says that in one study he saw the indications, that children having insufficient sleep at the age of 30 months may become obese at the age of 7 years, which suggests that proper nap is necessary for programming the part of the brain that regulates appetite and energy expenditure.
However, he says that such problems can be attributed only to teenagers in whom the need for sleep increases during this critical developmental period.
Another piece of research, Dr. Taheri says, showed that levels of leptin, a hormone produced by fat tissue when energy stores are low, were more than 15 percent lower in the children who sleep for five hours as compared to those sleeping for eight hours.
He also says that ghrelin, a hormone released by the stomach to signal hunger, was found to be almost 15 percent higher in children taking five hour sleep.
Dr. Taheri says that sleep loss also disturbs other hormones, including insulin, cortisol (stress hormone), and growth hormone, due to which the desire for having carlorie rich foods increases.
He says that poor sleep leads to fatigue that results in reduced levels of physical activity and lower energy expenditure, which in turn leads to obesity.
“Sleep is probably not the only answer to the obesity pandemic, but its effect should be taken seriously, as even small changes in energy balance are beneficial,” says Dr. Taheri.
“Good sleep could be promoted by removal of gadget distractions from bedrooms and restricting their use,” he says.
Dr Shahrad Taheri says that increased availability of computers, mobile phones, TVs and other gadgets causes decline in nightly quota of sleep, which may lead to obesity.
In an article published in the ‘Archives of Disease in Childhood’, he has suggested that these devices should be banned from children’s bedrooms to prevent them from unwanted health problems.
Dr. Taheri says that shorter sleep duration disturbs normal metabolism, which may contribute to obesity, insulin resistance, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. The laboratory data suggests that deprivation of proper sleep for even two to three nights can have profound effects on the human body.
He says that in one study he saw the indications, that children having insufficient sleep at the age of 30 months may become obese at the age of 7 years, which suggests that proper nap is necessary for programming the part of the brain that regulates appetite and energy expenditure.
However, he says that such problems can be attributed only to teenagers in whom the need for sleep increases during this critical developmental period.
Another piece of research, Dr. Taheri says, showed that levels of leptin, a hormone produced by fat tissue when energy stores are low, were more than 15 percent lower in the children who sleep for five hours as compared to those sleeping for eight hours.
He also says that ghrelin, a hormone released by the stomach to signal hunger, was found to be almost 15 percent higher in children taking five hour sleep.
Dr. Taheri says that sleep loss also disturbs other hormones, including insulin, cortisol (stress hormone), and growth hormone, due to which the desire for having carlorie rich foods increases.
He says that poor sleep leads to fatigue that results in reduced levels of physical activity and lower energy expenditure, which in turn leads to obesity.
“Sleep is probably not the only answer to the obesity pandemic, but its effect should be taken seriously, as even small changes in energy balance are beneficial,” says Dr. Taheri.
“Good sleep could be promoted by removal of gadget distractions from bedrooms and restricting their use,” he says.
Labels: Health
