A study claims tired people eat more junk food - Health

Dec 19, 2018

Or so says a new study.

Not getting an adequate amount of sleep each night could be making you fat says a new study. The research compiled suggested that even forgoing a single night of sleep can increase your interest in eating junk food dramatically.

The Guardian recently reported on the findings collected by Professor Jan Peters and team at the University of Cologne. Writing for the Journal of Neuroscience, the researchers detailed that disrupted sleep influences hormone levels, which in turn changes hunger levels.

It’s not the first time that lack of sleep has been related to weight gain, but it is the first time that findings have not related to fluctuating hormones (which in turn influence hunger levels). Rather this study revealed that it may instead have to do with the brain’s ability to recognise reward. “Our data brings us a little closer to understanding the mechanism behind how sleep deprivation changes food valuation,” commented Peters.

The study itself saw 32 healthy men aged between 19 and 33 given the same dinner of pasta and veal, an apple and a strawberry yoghurt. Participants were then divided into two groups; half were sent to bed donning a sleep-tracking device and the others kept awake all night by playing games in the lab.

Hunger and appetite levels were rated the next day, as were the hormones related to stress and appetite. All then participated in a game in which they were presented with pictures of 24 different types of junk food (chocolate included) alongside 24 inedible items like hats. Each participant was asked to confirm how much they would be willing to pay for each item on a scale. A week later, the experiment was repeated, with the dual groups swapping roles.

Research revealed that participants of both groups presented the same levels of hunger, blood sugar and hormones each morning. The real change was seen when it came to the activity; those who were sleep-deprived were consistently willing to pay much more for junk food than when they were well-rested.

Peters has admitted that findings are not yet complete and that further research is needed to see just why a bad’s night sleep directly encourages more junk food indulgence, but he does confirm that there is a direct link between lacking some shut eye and craving some takeaway.

The detailed research notes can be read in full online.