Want higher quality sleep? Cut down on junk food. Researchers found that eating unhealthy foods high in processed food affected people’s deep sleep (also referred to as slow-wave sleep). During this stage of sleep, the pituitary gland within the brain releases a burst of growth hormone, which helps construct and repair muscles, bones, and other tissues. Deep sleep also enhances cognitive function and memory.
The study was published online on May 28, 2023. obesitychecked out 15 healthy men with normal sleep habits (sleeping a median of seven to nine hours per night). Participants ate a healthy or unhealthy weight-reduction plan for every week. Both foods contain the identical variety of calories, that are tailored to every individual’s day by day needs. However, unhealthy diets were high in sugar and saturated fat and included many processed foods.
After every week on the weight-reduction plan, participants spent two nights in a sleep laboratory where their slow-wave brain activity was measured. They first had a daily night’s sleep that matched their normal sleep schedule. The next night they were kept awake before their usual bedtime after which allowed to simulate the disruption of their sleep. After several weeks, the study was repeated, everyone switched to a special weight-reduction plan and the sleep lab was reassessed.
The researchers found that when participants followed an unhealthy weight-reduction plan, they’d poorer quality deep sleep (indicated by decreased slow-wave activity). This was true for each normal and disturbed sleep. He notes that it’s difficult to attract conclusions from only one week of poor eating. Still, the findings suggest that weight-reduction plan might be a very important strategy to influence sleep quality.
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