Want to Lose Weight? Get a Good Night’s Sleep!

There are lots us things  you can do to drop a few pounds, but only one of them is perfectly natural and 100 percent healthy. For decades, sleep experts have been telling us that we need at least eight hours of shuteye each night.  But most American adults don’t come near that number. The reason sleep is good for our waistlines is that we burn calories in Dreamland. Conversely, when we stay up late and get too little sleep, we are more likely to eat and drink even if we aren’t hungry.

In a recent study conducted at Brigham Young University,  participants who got more hours of shuteye had lower body fat than those who keep irregular sleep hours.  With more than 300 participants, the study uncovered a strong link between low sleeping times and high body fat. According to researchers, 6.5 hours of sleep each night was the bare minimum; any less than that was highly correlated with high Body Mass Index (BMI) numbers.

Researchers also found that waking and going to sleep at the same time each day was strongly linked with lower body fat numbers.  Sleep experts speculate that this may be due to the fact that the body burns more calories when it is on a consistent sleep schedule.

Author

Dr. Charles Goldsmith Dr. Charles Goldsmith started his career as an OB/GYN over 30 years ago. He ran a successful practice but noticed his clients consistently requesting assistance with weight loss. After countless hours of research and studying the numerous aspects of weight loss, Dr. Goldsmith determined that weight loss is very complex and needed to be supervised by a physician.