Children who live in families involved in managing sleep, watching screens and sharing dinners are less likely to become obese than others according to the results of this study published in the medical journal Frontiers in Psychology.
Researchers at the University of Illinois analyzed the sleep of 337 children under the age of 7, the time they spent in front of a screen and the number of dinners spent with family.
Lack of sleep affects weight gain
Lack of sleepseems to have a real impact on weight gain because it particularly disrupts the area that manages satiety and eating. Not getting enough sleep would therefore make you fat. Children who slept at least 10 hours a day were less likely to become obese than those who slept less, and regardless of their lifestyle. As children seem to act by imitation, it is also important that parents have a healthy lifestyle and sufficient sleep time. Indeed, the study also revealed that parents’ lack of sleep has an impact on their children’s weight. This observation has already been confirmed by previous studies.
“We made another interesting discovery, which is that the most caloricwere particularly sought after by people deprived of sleep “specifies Matthew Walke of the University of California in a study published in August 2013.” All of these findings may potentially explain the link between lack of sleep, weight gain and obesity “he added, before concluding” that sufficient sleep could allow better weight control, through the brain mechanisms governing appropriate food choices “.
“The high prevalence of overweight and obesity among children and adults in the United States continues to be a major public health problem,” the researchers recall.
“Having a well-rested family should be a priority for parents, said Barbara H. Fiese in charge of the study. were sleeping as well as their children in the household and we found the two sides to be really connected. “
