Latest News

  • Home
  • Food & Health
  • Monitor their bedtime: Children’s poor sleep quality associated with obesity
Monitor their bedtime: Children’s poor sleep quality associated with obesity
27 January 2018 IST
Monitor their bedtime: Children’s poor sleep quality associated with obesity

 
Shorter sleep duration, measured in hours, was associated with a higher BMI z-score (body mass index adjusted for age and sex).

 
 

Dear parents, the quality of your kid’s poor sleep can affect their eating habits and weight, according to a study.
 
“Childhood obesity very often leads to adult obesity,” said the study’s lead author, Bernard Fuemmeler. “This puts them at greater risk of developing obesity-related cancers in adulthood.”
 
Fuemmeler explained that previous research has shown that sleep patterns play a role in obesity in adults, but most research exploring the connection between sleep and obesity in children has focused on the duration of sleep, rather than the way quality of sleep or circadian patterns affect eating behaviors and weight.
 
In this study, Fuemmeler and colleagues enrolled 120 children whose mothers had participated in the Newborn Epigenetic Study, a federally funded project that examines how environmental exposures and nutrition, both pre-birth and during early childhood, affect how genes work.
 
The average age of the children was 8. Researchers controlled for age, sex, race, and maternal education as an indicator of socioeconomic status. To track the sleep-wake cycle, the children wore accelerometers continuously for 24 hours per day for a period of at least five days. To gauge eating habits, children completed the “eating in the absence of hunger test.”
 
Children ate a meal and reported when they were full; the researchers then tracked how much food they ate once they had reached the point of satiety.
 
The researchers found:
 
-Shorter sleep duration, measured in hours, was associated with a higher BMI z-score (body mass index adjusted for age and sex). Each additional hour of sleep was associated with a .13 decrease in BMI z-score, and with a 1.29 centimeter decrease in waist circumference.
 
-More fragmented rest-activity rhythms and increased intradaily variability, a measure of the frequency and extent of transitions between sleep and activity, were also associated with greater waist circumferences.
 
-Earlier onset of the most active period during daytime, diurnal activity, was associated with higher intake of calories once the children had reached the point of satiety.
 
Overall, Fuemmeler said, the study results indicate that while sleep duration is important, examining markers of sleep quality may also be useful in designing childhood obesity prevention strategies.
 
“Today, many children are not getting enough sleep,” Fuemmeler said. “There are a number of distractions, such as screens in the bedroom, that contribute to interrupted, fragmented sleep. This, perpetuated over time, can be a risk factor for obesity. Because of the strong links between obesity and many types of cancer, childhood obesity prevention is cancer prevention, in my view.”
 
The data was presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Special Conference Obesity and Cancer: Mechanisms Underlying Etiology and Outcomes.

 
 
 
 
 

Related Topics

 
 
 

Trending News & Articles

 Article
12 Early Signs Of Lung Cancer To Never Ignore

Lung cancer is usually not noticeable during the early stages. Most people are diagnosed when the disease is at an advanced stage. According to Cancer.org, it is ...

Recently posted . 6K views . 2 min read
 

 Article
11 Surprising Benefits Of Wood Apple Or Bael Fruit

The health benefits of wood apple include [1] relief from constipation, indigestion, peptic ulcer, piles, respiratory problems, diarrhea, and dysentery. It also b...

Recently posted . 4K views . 2 min read
 

 Article
10 Amazing Benefits Of Bael (Kaitha)

Bael, also known as the “Wood Apple”, is a species native to India. The bael tree is considered to be sacred to the Hindus. A famous drink known as sh...

Recently posted . 4K views . 2 min read
 

 Article
These 7 Remedies Can Remove The Milia (Milk Spots) From Your Face

Do you know what milia are? Milia is a skin condition which causes the appearance of small white hard bumps on the skin which usually appear on the face, neck or ch...

Recently posted . 3K views . 2 min read
 

 
 

More in Food & Health

 Article
Skincare in smog season: Here’s how to protect your skin from air pollution

The pollutants in the air tend to make skin dry and vulnerable to penetration by harmful particulates. Follow these expert tips to ward off skin diseases: ...

Recently posted. 900 views . 1 min read
 

 Article
बच्चों में टूरेट सिंड्रोम के 5 प्रमुख लक्षण

1.क्या है टूरेट सिंड्रोम  

Recently posted. 301 views . 7 min read
 

 Article
This Common Type of Stress Can Literally Give You a Heart Attack

Everyone knows that stress is bad for your heart. But one kind of stress in particular is associated with a 13-times higher risk of heart attack, according to a new...

Recently posted. 695 views . 1 min read
 

 Video
Chilli Chicken by Gobble



Recently posted . 611 views
 

 Video
Delhi’s famous fire paan



Recently posted . 741 views
 

 Article
Lemon Juice – The Good, the Bad, & the Sour

In a great tale of opposites, lemon juice can be both acidic and basic, or alkaline. Read on to find out why people are talking about this, and what it means for yo...

Recently posted. 890 views . 1 min read
 

 Article
Thandai Recipe

Thandai is a popular drink in North India. Thandai is chilled flavoured milk with the goodness of cooling spices and nuts. Presenting an easy recipe of the...

Recently posted. 684 views . 11 min read
 

 
 
 

   Prashnavali

  Thought of the Day

मुस्कराना जिन्दगी का वो खुबसूरत लम्हा है, जिसका अंदाज सब रिश्तो से अलबेला है जिसे मिल जाये वो तन्हाई में भी खुश और जिसे ना मिले वो भीड़ में भी अकेला है
Anonymous

Be the first one to comment on this story

Close
Post Comment
Shibu Chandran
2 hours ago

Serving political interests in another person's illness is the lowest form of human value. A 70+ y old lady has cancer.

November 28, 2016 05:00 IST
Shibu Chandran
2 hours ago

Serving political interests in another person's illness is the lowest form of human value. A 70+ y old lady has cancer.

November 28, 2016 05:00 IST
Shibu Chandran
2 hours ago

Serving political interests in another person's illness is the lowest form of human value. A 70+ y old lady has cancer.

November 28, 2016 05:00 IST
Shibu Chandran
2 hours ago

Serving political interests in another person's illness is the lowest form of human value. A 70+ y old lady has cancer.

November 28, 2016 05:00 IST


ads
Back To Top