When You Lack Sleep, You Can't Resist Chips, Candies, Cookies -- Here's Why

Lack of sleep has always been linked to poor diet, weight gain and overeating. However, a new study presents how sleep loss can trigger this process by increasing the blood levels of the chemical signal which promotes the pleasure from eating sweet and salty foods.

The findings on lack of sleep, published in the journal Sleep on Feb. 29, indicated how the sleep-deprived subjects in the study failed to resist the chips, cookies and candies even after consuming a meal that covers 90 percent of the daily caloric needs.   Based on the results, lack of sleep mostly affects the appetite during the late afternoon as well as early evening, including the period when the snack intake was connected to weight gain.

Lack of sleep enhances a signal, which appears to increase the food intake's hedonic aspect, or the satisfaction earned from eating. According to a research associate at the University of Chicago Erin Hanlon, sleep loss seems to raise the endocannbinoid system or the similar system being aimed at by marijuana's active ingredient in order to boost the appetite,  Mens Fitness reported.

The study was designed to study how the endocannabinoid system associated lack of sleep with weight gain. Using 14 healthy men and women aged 20, the participants were told to eat the same meals three times per day at the same specific time. The researchers were able to measure the hormone ghrelin levels that promotes appetite as well as leptin that marks the fullness in the blood, including the blood levels of endocannabinoids

Following a period of lack of sleep, the participants experienced a notable increase in their level of hunger, even after the second meal. Also, the subjects reported a greater appetite, noting that they could eat more compared to when they expected the day following a complete night's sleep.

The study about lack of sleep, therefore, is very significant, as the findings show conformity with epidemiologic proof that are also applicable to the ordinary life conditions, according to Explore Supplements.