A study out of Ohio State University examined how the amount of sleep impacts our decision making when it comes to snacking. The study was comprised of 200,000 American adults and found “a link between not meeting sleep recommendations and eating more snack-related carbohydrates, added sugar, fats and caffeine.” Given these findings, how much sleep is recommended for optimal health and eating decision making? According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and Sleep Research Society, we are recommended to get at least 7 hours of sleep a night regularly. In addition to weight gain and obesity risk both increasing when we get less than the recommended amount of sleep, our risk of high blood pressure and heart disease also increases.
This research further confirms our emphasis on the importance of sleep. Here at AGEIST we like to focus on the 4 Big Rocks: diet, movement, sleep, and stress. If one of those is lacking, it affects the other and we can’t reach optimal health.
https://news.osu.edu/meeting-sleep-recommendations-could-lead-to-smarter-snacking/