Less than 7 hours of sleep increases likelihood of obesity

Less than 7 hours of sleep increases likelihood of obesity. March. 06, 2017 07:09. enhanced@donga.com.

Recent research results suggest that not enough sleep increases the risk of gaining weight, with significant probability of higher risk in abdominal obesity. While many global researchers already found the correlation between lack of sleep and obesity, the recent finding was the first conducted to Koreans.

Led by Professors Park Sang-min and Kim Kyu-woong at Seoul National University medical school, an analysis of national health and nutrition data made from 2008 to 2011 showed that those who sleep less than five hours a day may face 22 percent higher possibility of becoming obese than those who sleep an average of seven hours a day.

The study was designed to first survey obese participants in four groups categorized into less than five, six, seven, and eight hours of sleep. Results found that less than five-hour sleeping group (872 males, 1,382 females) showed 32 percent and 22 percent higher probability of abdominal and systemic obesity than less than seven-hour sleeping group (2,215 males, 2,863 females).

Researchers explained the difference lied in hormone imbalance due to less sleep. "Lack of sleep gives negative pacts on the secretion of 'leptin,' which maintains your body fat, and 'ghrelin,' which triggers appetite," said Professor Park.

The recent findings of the two researchers were published in the latest edition of the "Journal of Sleep Research" issued by the European Sleep Research Society.