How to Sleep Better to Control Weight

Controlling weight can improve your health and help prevent or treat some conditions. It may also reduce your risk of developing other health problems and diseases, such as heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes.

Cravings for sweet or salty foods and drinks can come from many sources, including afternoon lulls, boredom, or stress. Try to satisfy these cravings with nutrient-rich foods like fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low fat proteins.

Sleep

Research shows that sleep is associated with the production and regulation of hormones that affect appetite. For example, a lack of sleep increases the levels of neurotransmitters called ghrelin and leptin — hormones that stimulate hunger and satiety. This imbalance leads to overeating and weight gain. Studies show that people who increase their sleep duration can decrease the levels of ghrelin and leptin and increase the level of leptin, which helps them feel full. In addition, those who sleep longer have a tendency to conserve energy-dense body fat and have less weight gain than those who sleep less.1

This is why it is important to get adequate amounts of restful sleep.

Stress Management

Identifying and tackling your stressors is essential to improving mental and physical health. If you’re not already, start keeping a stress diary to understand how your daily routine affects you. Recognizing warning signs, such as tense muscles and headaches, can help you take action.

Studies show that chronic stress, which can be long-lasting and often cumulative, contributes to weight gain and a variety of health problems. One such health risk is abdominal fat accumulation, which increases your risk for cardiovascular diseases (Chaplin & Smith 2011).

A recent study showed that people who participated in an eight-week stress management program versus a control group lost more weight and saw improvements on measures of perceived stress, depression, and quality of life. Participants in the stress management group also displayed better compliance with dietary instructions than those in the control group. One technique for managing stress is biofeedback, a process of monitoring body functions such as heart rate and muscle tension with the aim of influencing how your body responds to stress.

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