Sleep well ladies if you want to keep your heart health in check

People are not wrong when they say early to bed early to rise will make you healthy, wealthy, and wise. Now researchers are also backing this thought as they’ve found how sleep and heart health complement each other.
Epilepsy
Excessive lack of sleep can actually cause you to have an epilepsy seizure. Image courtesy: Shutterstock.
IANS Updated: 18 Feb 2020, 12:16 pm IST
  • 55

If binge-watching sessions and bedtime insta scrolls are eating up your sleep time then watch out ladies because your heart will pay the price for it. 

Read what science has to say – A current study, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association says that women who sleep poorly tend to overeat and consume a lower-quality diet and poor sleep quality can increase the risk of heart disease and obesity. Now you see why we were advocating good sleeping habits. 

Tired of your bad eating habits? Blame it on your sleep pattern
Previous studies have shown that people who get less sleep are more likely to develop obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease–and that the relationship may be partially explained by diet.

The study was designed to get a more comprehensive picture in women by examining associations between overall diet quality and multiple aspects of sleep quality.

“Women are particularly prone to sleep disturbances across the life span because they often shoulder the responsibilities of caring for children and family and, later, because of menopausal hormones,” said Indian-origin researcher and study senior author Brooke Aggarwal from Columbia University Vagelos.

For the findings, the researchers analysed the sleep and eating habits of an ethnically diverse group of 495 women, ages 20 to 76.

The study looked at sleep quality, the time it took to fall asleep, and insomnia.

The women also reported on the types and amounts of foods they typically eat throughout the year, allowing researchers to measure their typical dietary patterns.

Similar to previous studies of sleep and diet, the study found that those with worse overall sleep quality consumed more of the added sugars associated with obesity and diabetes.

Select Topics of your interest and let us customize your feed.

PERSONALISE NOW
sleep
Do you know, that your partner’s scent can help you sleep better? Image courtesy: Shutterstock

You tend to make unhealthy food choices if you don’t sleep well
Women who took longer to fall asleep had higher caloric intake and ate more food by weight, the researchers said.

And women with more severe insomnia symptoms consumed more food by weight and fewer unsaturated fats than women with milder insomnia.

“Our interpretation is that women with poor-quality sleep could be overeating during subsequent meals and making more unhealthy food choices,” said Aggarwal.

Also, read: Can’t sleep? These 6 podcasts, tools, and YouTube videos can help you doze off

“Poor sleep quality may lead to excessive food and calorie intake by stimulating hunger signals or suppressing signals of fullness,” said study lead author Faris Zuraikat.

Zuraikat added:

Fullness is largely affected by the weight or volume of food consumed, and it could be that women with insomnia consume a greater amount of food in an effort to feel full.

“However, it’s also possible that poor diet has a negative impact on women’s sleep quality, eating more could also cause gastrointestinal discomfort, for instance, making it harder to fall asleep or remain asleep,” Zuraikat concluded.

Maybe your sleeping pattern is one of the reasons why you are also gaining weight. So, stay active and sleep tight ladies if you want to keep obesity and heart diseases at bay.   

  • 55

Healthshots Wellness Newsletter

Get your Daily Dose of Wellness in your Inbox

Subscribe Now
Next Story