Sleeping and our metabolism
Sleep can typically affect our metabolism in two ways. The first is how it affects us during sleep. The second of these is how our metabolism becomes affected after we have experienced sleep deprivation. In our fast paced society there is an increasing pressure to work very long hours in order to compete in the world of work, which then affects the amount of time we have allocated to sleeping each day. Often people who suffer from sleep deprivation try to survive and function properly after four hours of sleep every night, which is near impossible due to the necessity of sleep in order to maintain concentration, alertness and so on.
Research indicates that a persons metabolic rate decreases by up to 15% during sleep. This means that we burn less calories during sleep than we do during the day. Our basic metabolic rate utilizes around eighty percent of out calorie intake daily. Out basic metabolic rate is the amount of energy we need to perform tasks, and the amount of energy required to sustain our body and keep out body functioning properly.
When deprived of sleep, we are awake which means our BMR is kept at this higher level, which in turn uses lots of our energy, resulting in a person having less energy than they should and experiencing feelings of drowsiness and tiredness during the day.
As our ability to function adequately is impacted during the day, so too is our ability to perform normal tasks, particularly tasks which may be mentally taxing and require our concentration.
Lack of sleep also results in increased levels of the hormone cortisol being released. This promotes hunger.
Lower levels of the hormone Leptin are released. These hormones indicate whether our body is hungry or not. Our bodies react tolower levels of leptin we experience by increasing hunger desires and cravings for carbohydrates. This article has illustrated the negative effects the sleep deprivation can have on out metabolism and in turn weight control.