Sleep Well, or Face the Possibility of Eating Poorly
It’s probably easier to fill a plate with nutritious food at a buffet if you’ve had enough sleep — and not just because you might be more attentive.
Sleep deprivation has been associated with obesity, but researchers still are learning exactly what’s going on. Two research projects presented at this week’s annual sleep conference looked at what happens in the brain when a sleep-deprived person is considering: Apple? Chips?
In one of the studies, 16 healthy adults underwent fMRIs - functional magnetic resonance imaging - after a normal night’s sleep and after 24 hours of sleep deprivation. While they were in the scanner, they rated how much they wanted 80 food items, lead researcher Stephanie Greer said by phone.
After the scan, participants got the food they chose; that gave the decision more weight than just selecting a picture of a food, said Matt Walker, a UC Berkeley psychology professor.