I have always known that a good and regular sleep pattern is good for your health and will actually also help you lose weight when trying to shed pounds.

For some it's just not that simple. I live in Denmark while my fiance´ lives in Wyoming, which makes it an 8 hour time differnce between us. If I don't stay up late, then I would never get to talk to him. And having a long dsiastance relationship over the next 13 months is rought enough as it is.

But once I am back in Wyoming and married, then I am sure things will change. My "better half" is good at always getting up and going to bed at the same time every day of the week, even weekends. And since we need our cuddle time, I know it will be easy for me to follow his lead on a good sleep pattern. 

Seems to me this draws conclusions not based on definitive study.  Just because "x is associated with y" doesn't mean it is the cause.  It appears to be a totally inadequate article and has no place here.  At least, this isn't the way we did it when I went to medical school.

Upon closer reading, I have to agree with cbinford.

My BF hasn't slept more than 8 hours in the last week!  He's on meds for pain and has always had problems, but now his doctor put him on Prednisone for apin in his hands, and it's even worse.  I'm very concerned about him, but what can be done?

Some people always say that they learn bad habits from their spouse. My spouse has great eating habits but terrible sleeping habits and they're rubbing off on me.

So this finally explains why all those trendy folks in "club scene" towns - where the weekend doesn't really kick off until midnight - are so dang fat! 

Wait - they are the skinniest pack I've ever met, despite eating and drinking into the wee morning hours and sleeping off most of the daylight hours of their weekend.  

Just saying that we should always consider that weight is influenced by many factors, including age, activity level (past and present!), genetics, eating habits, and, yes, sleep.  But articles such as this one may give people who can't sleep on a regular schedule a sense of helplessness that may actually sabotage their feeling that they can lose weight.  

New baby at home?  Doomed!  May as well have another bowl of ice cream!

Wacky work schedule?  Hopeless! Not point going to the gym - it won't make any difference.

How about we put "sleep schedule" on the list of good ideas - along with not sitting at a desk all day, taking the stairs, and eating breakfast - that are great helps if you can do it but not stand alone "deal breakers" for a healthy lifestyle if you can't.  

Physical and mental health come from an overall combination of factors and when we focus on controlling what we can change - while not feeling controlled by what we cannot change - we'll have the best outcomes.

 

what I want to know about is about NAPS.

I work 12 hour night shifts, so my sleep schedule is all over the place.  I'm convinced it's one reason why my husband has such an easy time losing weight, whereas I have to be diligent and extreme just to lose 5 lbs.  But there's no viable option for a day job right now, and articles like this do not make me feel any better.

Haha, I remain unconvinced though I do see a valid connection, but if it's true then this might have been a better post for a Friday rather than a Saturday :p.

I am 32 years old and highly overweight (approx 35Kg). I am trying to manage my sleep by going early to bed but in vain. Since 7 years I am suffering from Sleep debt because of following reason, 

• Little noise & movement can awake me up. 
• Over sensitive in diet, if I take tea/Coffee after 1 PM, I cant at sleep or any soft drink or food just before 3 hours going to bed.
• Once I wake up I cant sleep again. 
• Does not matter at what time I am going to sleep but I will wake up automatically same time. 

I wish to sleep at 9:30 or 10 to get up early in morning by 4 or 5 Am.  

I never comment on these articles...but I couldn't agree more with froggywt!! No one should read this article and feel hopeless because they don't have a normal work schedule, which prevents a normal sleep schedule.

I have worked 8-5 in offices for the last 5 years. I had a normal work schedule, and often slept in on the weekends. I am 20 lbs overweight, but I attribute this to 1) sitting all day; 2) unhealthy snacking at my desk (boredom eating); 3) not working out before/after work.

Now, I work as a cook in a restaurant. I have an abnormal work (and sleep!) schedule, but I have been steadily losing weight since the change because I made positive changes to my snacking and workout habits.

Sleep is a contributor to weight loss or gain, but don't feel helpless if you can't wake up at the same time every day! It's only a contributor, not the only factor.

Don't feel helpless!!

I wonder if Cbinford has any additional references.  It is ina interesting topic.

I also do not usually reply to these things, but..

Interesting how many people argue this as practical life experience has already told me that when I stay up too late and then sleep in, it throws my whole routine off and I tend to drag all that next day. To think it doesn't effect my overall calorie expenditure to me seems ridiculous. Now.. would I worry about it if I did that to myself dancing the night away.. no. But if I did it to myself staying up to sit around watching a movie.. of course I would take it into consideration. Now.. do I consider it a problem.. no, but I am aware of what I do and adjust accordingly if adjustments need to be made.

On this site most should already know that day to day is nowhere near as important as overall averages. Articles like this, to me, are geared more towards those who are just starting to learn about their bodies and how all this works and designed to just give themselves something to look at in terms of their overall habits and how they may affect them. It is neither a good article or a bad one as everything we do to be successful here requires a certain amount of self study and acknowledgement that no one is the same. Some things will apply to you.. some things will not.

This article has good information, but is very short on solutions.  At least it has started us thinking and commenting.

Yes, I'm overweight, and yes, I have a circadian cycle problem.  I have restless legs syndrome, also known now as Ekbom's Disease.  It is a neurological disorder, centered in the same general area of the brain as Parkinson's.  I luckily work in a place which has allowed my work schedule to accomodate more or less for my sleeping issues.  After years of analysis, we finally figured out that my RLS was apparently triggered by an extreme ferritin (elemental iron) deficiency, and that is now under control. Unfortunately, the RLS, though abated somewhat through good iron supplementation, is still effecting things.  (I had to start with IV iron infusion, taking an oral iron supplement now, FINALLY found one that works really well WITHOUT the nasty side effects!)

My REM sleep occurs between 4a and 9a, and I have to leave for work by 9:30 in the morning (and work until 7 or later).  I cherish being able to allow my body to get through REM on the weekends. I actually do get a recharge from it. *(I had to start with IV iron infusion, taking an oral iron supplement now, FINALLY found one that works really well WITHOUT the nasty side effects!)

As I understand it, now that my trigger is under control, the way I can get back to a human schedule is to get fully rested, and then slowly progress back to awakening normally.  Problem is, I haven't been fully rested for a decade, and I still have to work for a living.

All that being said, I do agree with the article in one aspect, that a standard sleeping schedule is a really good thing, for all the reasons listed.  What I didn't see was any solution proffered for those of us who have done sooo many things trying to get to a regular sleeping schedule, including whittling down our "social choices" to simply having a job, or not having a job.  (I say we/our, because I KNOW I'm not alone).  Ideas? Comments?  (...and I'm greatly encouraged by the number of medical professionals I see actually commenting here...)

My husband works rotating shift work, 7 days on 2 days off, 3 shifts rotating, A: 7-3, B:3-11, & C: 11-7. What are going to be the effects on him working this job?

Adequate sleep has been elusive to me since I was 12 years old. I am a natural night owl, being genuinely unable to sleep until between 11PM-1AM or later, regardless of the sleep hygene techniques used. I work an 8-5 and wake anytime between 5:30-7 for my workdays. I am perpetually unable to recoup my sleep debt other than a periodic "crash" for 12+ hrs. I am positive that this affects my eating habits because I have stronger craving for sweets and bad things and lower ability to resist. When I crash and for a few days following, I feel more energized and like it is less of a struggle for me to manage my eating habits. I do better with a more erratic lifestyle and later work hours, but it doesn't pay as well.

I'm right with you, catharsisx101; you might have yourself checked out for RLS, I started showing signs and symptoms when I was around 16, but was not diagnosed until I was 50, was just referred to as a "night owl" because of my need to sleep late and stay up late.  Without partying, I might add...  

 

it also makes no mention about people who do shift work

 

For many years the alarm was set for 5:30 am so my husband could get the early train to work downtown. Coincidentally, my weight ballooned to 230 lbs. When he started working in midtown, we set the alarm for 6:30. Coincidentally, my weight dropped to 198 lbs (without any dieting or deliberate effort on my part). There may have been other factors, and I was still obese, but I noticed the change then, and I believe the extra sleep helped...also less stress overall I think.

Wish I didn't work the midnight shift. I isn't possible for me to maintain my "normal" sleeping hours and my marriage on the weekends.

Good discussion going on.

For the part that sleeping affects your health directly, sure. It increases the cortisole hormone in the body which naturally puts one in the "survival mode". And that mode is not something you want to be in when you don't need to. Amongts many other things, high cortisole levels increase your stress levels unnecessarily as well. Not healthy.

And the part about food choices and appetite, I totally agree from personal experience. And that in the "survival mode", you want to "survive". You naturally don't care much about the quality of the food as such. It's like going food-shopping when you're hungry...

Having said that, I have very irregular sleeping hours due to work. I am very active and have a very healthy lifestyle (-sleeping). Some nights, however, I almost do not sleep at all (awake for 24+ hours) followed by a few hours of sleep. If this sleep gets interrupted, however, those are the days I get an uncontrollable urge for over-eating and preferably unhealthy stuff.

Good article, many thanks to the author.

To be clear to those objecting to the scientific relevance of this study, the first two paragraphs list observations about sleep patterns seen during a study. These are the study results, and they are pretty clear.  They studied two groups of people, one that went to sleep and woke at about the same time every day, and another group that went to sleep at varying times each day, and/or on certain days, and awoke at varying times.  They compared their total sleep, and found, not surprisingly, that the first group fared better than the latter.

The third paragraph listed what kinds of things one could expect to experience if they did not get enough sleep, based upon OTHER studies.  However, it DID NOT specifically indicate that these were results observed during the study.  It just listed that they were POSSIBLE.  This paragraph clearly does not attempt to directly relate those relationships and the study data itself.  So it's a little dis-ingenuine to call the study flawed, since the study is NOT claiming these outcomes were observed.

But anyone with basic logic skills could clearly see that a strong relationship likely exists between the study data, and the results of other studies.  The combination  clearly suggests there MAY be health implications associated with irregular sleep patterns.

And I would go one step further, as a member of the group with irregular sleep patterns, that except possibly for very young and healthy people - who seem to be able to get away with almost anything (for a while anyway), there is no doubt that lack of proper sleep affects general health. 

And there is little doubt that a regular sleep pattern promotes proper and sufficient sleep, and an irregular schedule does not. 

Even though the study did not address it, I'd go one step further and propose that sleeping during "normal" hours (i.e. when it's dark), promotes more and better sleep than sleeping during the day.  This is plausible if for no other reason than it is well documented that the body only produces melatonin when it is dark.  If you need studies to convince yourself of these assertions, by all means, throw your research dollars at it.

Or, you could just try to maintain a regular sleep schedule to maximize the amount and quality of your sleep, with the possible benefit that it may improve your health, and stop worrying so much about always having to have the whole answer before actually doing something to improve your health.  No one has the whole answer, and I doubt anyone ever will.

Well, if nothing else, don't lose sleep over the article, for crying out loud...because, according to paragraph 3, that could be bad for your health :-)

Or could it be that the people who think they need to indulge on non working days are those who think it is OK to indulge when you can? Correlation is a tricky thing to handle, and the obvious explanation is not always the right one. I have slept less than 6 hours at night for my whole life, as a skinny child, then a skinny adult. Now I am a chubby middle-aged menopausal woman with hypothyroidism, and I doubt it is my sleeping habits that did the deed...

I can see a lot of negative rections to this article, and I can not understand the reason for that. Of course, lack of sleep is not the main thing that causes you to be fat, but it is for sure a big part of what we may call an unhealthy life style.

For me it makes a lot of sence that sleeping 5h in regular days, and 12 in the weekend can not be a healthy habbit. I mean in a way you would be following the sleeping equivalent of a " yo-yo diet" where you are either starvng or overdoing it.

I have tried to sleep about 9h in the weekends and to start my day with a jog, or other types of exercise. Sometimes, if I have a very intensive and busy day, I sleep one extra hour during the afternoon. I have also tried oversleeping... but that just makes it more difficult to wake up on Mondays, and it makes me have a bad attitude towards my work, before the day has even begun.

I like my 8 hours of sleep and I try to go to bed every night the same time.  When it’s not the case then I feel it and I crave more food.

My spouse doesn’t like to sleep. He thinks it’s waste of time. So he barely gets 5 hours every night. But once a week or so he would just crash. I guess his body is taking what it needs to.

One guy I knew was constantly sleeping, any chance he could get in any position. I guess there are some rules and there are always exceptions.

Bull Crap! By sleeping in, I actually eat less! If I sleep through breakfast, I start my day with a light snack then lunch. After I work out, it's time for another small snack then dinner. AND, if I am up exerting myself 5+ days a week on workouts plus a busy regular home life, don't I need some sleep for body recovery? Yes, overall, sleep is important and lack of sleep leads to unhealthy cravings, but isn't the key to weight loss is respecting and listening to your body? So, if I need an extra hour or 2 to start my day at my best and make clear healthy decisions, well then so be it! :)

Original Post by: annalynneashcraft

My husband works rotating shift work, 7 days on 2 days off, 3 shifts rotating, A: 7-3, B:3-11, & C: 11-7. What are going to be the effects on him working this job?

I did this for years, and it took me 2 years after I did this, that I could sleep more than 4 hrs at a time. (I would split my sleep)  Being aware is the most important thing, the problem is that you sacrifice sleep to be with family and bonding,  it is important just to understand you are doing them and you a big favor to sleep at least 7 hrs straight if possible.

Original Post by: annalynneashcraft

My husband works rotating shift work, 7 days on 2 days off, 3 shifts rotating, A: 7-3, B:3-11, & C: 11-7. What are going to be the effects on him working this job?

I did this for years, and it took me 2 years after I did this, that I could sleep more than 4 hrs at a time. (I would split my sleep)  Being aware is the most important thing, the problem is that you sacrifice sleep to be with family and bonding,  it is important just to understand you are doing them and you a big favor to sleep at least 7 hrs straight if possible.

that's awesome, thanks.