Are you getting enough sleep at night? If you are trying to cut down on sugar and salt, it could be a good idea to keep a track of your sleeping schedule too. If the findings of a latest study are to be believed, a good night's sleep helps in reducing the desire for sweet and salty foods, intake of sugar and caloric content.
Previous studies have hinted at links between sleep and metabolic disorders. It is also very well-known that continuously sleeping less than seven hours is associated with an increased cardio-metabolic risk -- heart disease risk and metabolic disorders. According to this study, increasing the sleep duration, and having a good sleep may help reduce cardio-metabolic risk and other risk factors, says lead author Rob Henst, Associate Professor at the University of Cape Town in South Africa.
The study was published in the Journal of Sleep Research. According to the scientists, sleep extension was associated with improved measures of insulin sensitivity and reductions in overall appetite, desire for sweet and salty foods, intake of daily free sugar, and percentage of daily caloric intake from protein.
To analyse the link in detail, the researchers studied a data of 138 persons who were either healthy, healthy short-sleeping, overweight short-sleeping, or pre- or hypertensive short-sleeping individuals.
"It is now apparent that poor sleep quality may be an equally important risk factor for cardio-metabolic diseases," said Dale Rae from the varsity.