Years of being a night owl and having undiagnosed sleep apnea have gotten me accustomed to functioning on little sleep. I probably get 5 hours a night on average. I am starting to realize that I have got to start going to bed earlier. Not only am I starting to get sleepy during the day, but staying up late increases the eating window. If I went to bed 3 hours earlier (which would still put me at around 11 pm), that is three hours that I wouldn’t have to potentially eat stuff that I don’t need.
Recent studies are showing that lack of sleep can alter hormones in your body that affect your appetite. Two hormones specifically are leptin and ghrelin. Ghrelin stimulates appetite and leptin sends a signal to the brain when you are full. When you don't get enough sleep, you guessed it - leptin levels go down, making you not feel satisfied after eating and ghrelin levels rise, stimulating your appetite. Double whammy.
Several studies have also found that people with altered levels of these hormones begin to crave high carbohydrate, calorie dense foods roughly 45% more than those with normal levels. Foods like cereal, breads, cheese, peanut butter, and pasta become staples in the person with low leptin’s diet.
I don’t know about you, but that sounds like me to a tee! I’ve often said that my body doesn’t have a button that tells me when I’m full. I was joking but maybe there was more to it than I thought. And I could live off of cheese, pasta, and potatoes.
So for the next few weeks my goal is to try and get accustomed to being in bed by midnight. It’s going to be difficult but I plan on keeping some sort of journal to document trakodddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd my hunger levels.
(I seriously JUST dozed off and was holding down the d key). Need I say more? Here’s to sweet dreams NOT a sweet tooth!
Recent studies are showing that lack of sleep can alter hormones in your body that affect your appetite. Two hormones specifically are leptin and ghrelin. Ghrelin stimulates appetite and leptin sends a signal to the brain when you are full. When you don't get enough sleep, you guessed it - leptin levels go down, making you not feel satisfied after eating and ghrelin levels rise, stimulating your appetite. Double whammy.
Several studies have also found that people with altered levels of these hormones begin to crave high carbohydrate, calorie dense foods roughly 45% more than those with normal levels. Foods like cereal, breads, cheese, peanut butter, and pasta become staples in the person with low leptin’s diet.
I don’t know about you, but that sounds like me to a tee! I’ve often said that my body doesn’t have a button that tells me when I’m full. I was joking but maybe there was more to it than I thought. And I could live off of cheese, pasta, and potatoes.
So for the next few weeks my goal is to try and get accustomed to being in bed by midnight. It’s going to be difficult but I plan on keeping some sort of journal to document trakodddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddddd my hunger levels.
(I seriously JUST dozed off and was holding down the d key). Need I say more? Here’s to sweet dreams NOT a sweet tooth!
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