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Sleep deprived brains make us crave unhealthy food
Author: Jonathan Warren
When it comes to food, our brains make us choose unhealthy options if we are sleep deprived, two new studies have found.
One study showed that when participants spent just four hours in their single beds
, their brains reacted to pictures of unhealthy foods, with no reaction to pictures of healthy snacks.
In the second study, where the participants were allowed up to nine hours sleep, their brains had less of a reaction to the unhealthy food. The results of the two studies were compared after five nights of controlled sleep.
In the sleep deprived participants, the reward centres of the brain demonstrated a greater reaction when they looked at unhealthy foods. Researchers have suggested this could explain the link between being sleep deprived and being overweight.
The principal investigator in one of the studies, Dr Marie-Pierre St-Onge from New York’s Columbia University, explained: "The results suggest that, under restricted sleep, individuals will find unhealthy foods highly salient and rewarding, which may lead to greater consumption of those foods."
The reactions in the participants’ brains were observed with the use of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), which scans the brain. Each of the 25 participants in the studies were of normal weight.
In the past, research has shown that when healthy people are sleep deprived they feel an urge to eat sweet and salty foods. These new studies strengthen the link between sleep loss and unhealthy eating, highlighting the role of a good night’s sleep in weight management.
, their brains reacted to pictures of unhealthy foods, with no reaction to pictures of healthy snacks.
In the second study, where the participants were allowed up to nine hours sleep, their brains had less of a reaction to the unhealthy food. The results of the two studies were compared after five nights of controlled sleep.
In the sleep deprived participants, the reward centres of the brain demonstrated a greater reaction when they looked at unhealthy foods. Researchers have suggested this could explain the link between being sleep deprived and being overweight.
The principal investigator in one of the studies, Dr Marie-Pierre St-Onge from New York’s Columbia University, explained: "The results suggest that, under restricted sleep, individuals will find unhealthy foods highly salient and rewarding, which may lead to greater consumption of those foods."
The reactions in the participants’ brains were observed with the use of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), which scans the brain. Each of the 25 participants in the studies were of normal weight.
In the past, research has shown that when healthy people are sleep deprived they feel an urge to eat sweet and salty foods. These new studies strengthen the link between sleep loss and unhealthy eating, highlighting the role of a good night’s sleep in weight management.
