Important research published in the Nutrients journal showed a relationship between sleep quality and weight control. It showed that diet quality is linked to the amount of decent rest a person is getting and that the opposite is also true.
Sleep Quality and Weight May be Directly Linked
Previous research has linked obesity risk with duration and quality of sleep. However, the researchers in that study stated that the actual connection between the two factors wasn’t clear. However, there have been a few potential mechanisms that have been identified, including poorer diet and reduced physical activity.
According to the authors of the recent study, the relationship goes both ways. The sleep quality and weight link may have to do with the hormonal changes that occur when an individual isn’t sleeping well. They can impact appetite, food intake, satiety, and energy balance. Affected hormones include leptin and ghrelin. Not only is the release of these hormones changed, but so is the response the body has to those hormones.
The opposite is also true, when further connects sleep quality and weight control. The researchers in the recent study showed that when unhealthy lifestyle habits such as poor diet and low exercise occur, poor sleep quality often results. This creates a cycle that perpetuates the problem of struggling with sleeping and obesity risk.
Prioritize the Rest You Need to Make Lifestyle Changes Easier
The results of both studies indicate that the more improvements you make to your lifestyle such as diet, exercise and sleep, the easier all those factors will be to achieve. Improvements to what you eat, and the regularity of your physical activity can promote better rest at night. When you get a higher sleep quality, your weight will be easier to control because your positive lifestyle habits will be easier to maintain.
The toughest part is often to get the ball rolling with improved sleep if possible. Once you are feeling better rested, it becomes easier to make healthy food choices and pour yourself into a great exercise routine. This can start with a sleep supplement with melatonin. Combined with a regular sleep routine with a set bedtime and waking time, this can help to set your waking and sleeping clock. That way, you can start to turn the link between sleep quality and weight control in your favor. The longer you keep up all those habits, the easier it will be to keep them up based on the impact of hormones on your body.
