Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Sleep: too little and too much create fat

SLEEP'S effect on fat is becoming clearer. Having too much or too little piles on the worst kind of fat. Kristen Hairston and colleagues at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, monitored 1100 African and Hispanic Americans for five years. Both groups are at a high risk of obesity-related disorders. People under 40 gained 1.8 kilograms more on average if they got less than 5 hours of sleep per night than if they slept for 6 or 7 hours. Those regularly sleeping for more than 8 hours gained 0.8 kilograms more than the medium sleep group. CAT scans revealed increases in visceral fat, which accumulates around the internal organs and is particularly dangerous to health.

Source of Information : New Scientist March 6 2010

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