Sleepless Nights Trigger Junk Food Cravings

A recent study confirmed that lack of sleep encourages cravings for junk food and reduce appetite control.

Several researchers have proven the direct relationship between sleeping late and obesity but recently, a study confirmed that cravings specifically for junk food is at an all-time high among people who sleep very late at night, if not at all.

Researchers studied the brain activity of 25 normal-weight participants after five straight nights of being sleep deprived.

Each of the 25 participants was only allowed to sleep for four hours throughout the five days of study.

The participants were also exposed to images of unhealthy foods like pepperoni and chips.

Marie-Pierre St-Onge, the lead researchers of the study confirmed that results showed that the pleasure-seeking parts of the brain were activated even more after these images were shown.

In another study conducted by researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, 23 participants were asked to rate their cravings for 80 different foods during a routine MRI scan. This examination was repeated twice after one night of normal sleep and another night of less sleep.

Results showed that the ability to make healthier choices was dampened by the fact that those who were unable to sleep well through the night couldn't process information about what is healthy and what is not.

Both researchers agreed that more studies and examinations are needed to confirm direct relationship between junk food cravings and lack of sleep.