The causes of obesity are a combination of various factors, mainly an unhealthy diet and a sedentary lifestyle, but more and more studies also point to lack of sleep in children as a determining factor.
A recent investigation by a group of pediatricians specialized in endocrinology at the Josep Trueta Hospital in Girona indicates that Children who sleep less than ten hours have a higher risk of developing obesity.
In the study, published in the International Journal of Obesity, 300 children between 5 and 10 years old have participated to verify if the lack of sleep is related to childhood obesity.
They have been able to observe that sleeping less than recommended, ten hours in children and at least eight hours in adolescents, is associated with an increased risk of obesity. That is, that diet and physical activity would not be the only responsible factors.
The explanation would be that little sleep activate the genes responsible for obesity. Previous studies suggest that lack of sleep causes hormonal alterations to which the body reacts generating greater appetite.
When we are awake, the hormones that favor appetite are activated, while during sleep the hormones that inhibit it are put into operation.
Sleep is undoubtedly very important for the healthy development of the child, but beyond establishing schedules of duration it would be important to know if the way of sleeping (alteration in sleep patterns) also influences as a risk factor for obesity in children.
Via | The Reason Photo | thejbird on Flickr More information | International Journal of Obesity In Babies and more | Few hours of sleep in children favors obesity
