SleepWatch by Bodymatter

Trying to lose weight but not prioritizing your sleep? Poor sleep may be sabotaging your efforts.

Most believe that losing weight is simply about controlling caloric intake while increasing exercise. However, data and health science have increasingly shed light on the relationship between sleep and weight loss. When you sleep, proteins that affect metabolism are regulated. These proteins, Ghrelin and Leptin, are responsible for controlling the sensations of hunger and satiety (how satisfied or full you feel).

Over the past 80 years, the percentage of people getting 7- 8 hours of sleep has fallen from 85% to 59%. During that same period, the incidence of obesity in America has risen significantly.

How Sleep And Body Weight Are Linked

The Science

While there are many complex issues that surround weight loss — Ghrelin and Leptin — sometimes referred to as the “hungry and not-hungry hormones" play an important role in the regulation of appetite and body weight.

Leptin, which is made by fat cells and secreted into the bloodstream, functions to induce weight loss by signaling the brain to inhibit food intake and stimulate metabolic rate. Ghrelin is primarily released in the stomach and is thought to signal hunger in the brain. A lack of sleep causes Ghrelin levels to increase and Leptin levels to decrease. A prominent feature of obesity is Leptin resistance, which is the inability of high circulating levels to decrease one's appetite.

SleepWatch Findings

When analyzing the sleep patterns and body mass index (BMI) data of millions of anonymized SleepWatch users, we find that those SleepWatch users who do not get at least 5 hours of restful sleep* a night are 2.2X more likely to be overweight.

If you’ve tried weight loss programs and exercise routines and have not been successful at losing weight, you should examine your sleep. We can help.

* Total Restful Sleep Time as estimated by SleepWatch