Scientists Reveal Another Consequence of Poor Sleep: More Belly Fat

A new study shows that insufficient sleep is linked with an increase in fat in the belly.

A lack of sleep in sleep-restricted participants was linked to a 9 percent increase in total abdominal fat area and an 11 percent increase in abdominal visceral fat.

Visceral fat builds up deep inside the abdomen around internal organs, and has been linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.

While fat is normally deposited under the skin by the body, not getting enough sleep seems to move it deeper to theVisceral areas around the organs, where it can potentially cause more damage.

The Journal of the American College of Cardiology was written by Covassin.

There are consequences of insufficient sleep in the experiment.

According to a cardiologist at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, inadequate sleep can lead to fat being diverted to the more dangerous visceral compartment.

Visceral fat continued to increase despite a decrease in calories and weight during recovery sleep.

The volunteers were split into two groups over the course of the experiment, with one group getting nine hours of sleep per night, and the other group only getting four hours of sleep over the course of two weeks. The tests were repeated three months later.

The participants who were getting less sleep were consuming an average of more than 300 extra calories per day, taking in 13 percent moreProtein and 17 percent more fat. Energy expenditure was mostly the same.

The team monitored energy intake and expenditure, body weight, body composition, fat distribution, and circulating appetite, and some of the apparent biological changes wouldn't have been noticed outside of a full scientific evaluation.

The increase in weight was only about a pound, so the fat would have been missed if it had been detected.

Measures of weight alone would be false reassurance in regards to the health consequences of inadequate sleep.

It's even more dangerous because it's hard to spot the belly fat build-up. Shift work and late-night use of screens are some of the factors that contribute to the fact that one-third of adults in the US don't get enough sleep on a regular basis.

Getting enough sleep is important for brain functions such as memory, and for keeping the body hydrated, and for protecting against dementia, and for a host of other mental and physical health reasons. The study helps to show that there can be more than one health risk.

The researchers recommend increased exercise and healthy food choices as ways of preventing belly fat, as well as making sure our periods of sleep are regular and for long enough durations.

In the long term, these findings implicate inadequate sleep as a contributor to the epidemics of obesity, cardiovascular, and metabolic diseases.

The Journal of the American College of Cardiology published the research.