Losing Just 80 Minutes of Sleep a Night Could Lead to Weight Gain
Columbia University researchers found that adults who reduced their sleep by about 80 minutes nightly for six weeks gained an average of one pound and became more sedentary, adding to evidence that adequate sleep helps prevent obesity-related diseases.
Study Links Mild Sleep Loss to Weight Gain and Inactivity
A new study from Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons reveals that even modest, chronic sleep deprivation can lead to weight gain and reduced physical activity. Published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, the research shows that adults who cut their sleep by about 80 minutes per night for six weeks gained an average of one pound and increased their sedentary time.
The study included 95 adults who typically slept 7–8 hours nightly. During one six-week period, participants delayed their bedtime by 90 minutes; during another, they followed their usual sleep schedule. Throughout both phases, wrist monitors tracked sleep and physical activity, while researchers measured body weight, waist circumference, body composition, and fasting levels of appetite-regulating hormones.
Lead author Faris Zuraikat noted that while a one-pound gain over six weeks is modest, extrapolated to a full year, such sleep loss could result in clinically meaningful weight gain. Participants also became less active: sedentary time rose by an average of 17 minutes per day, and by nearly 30 minutes per day in men and postmenopausal women.
Previous work with the same participants found that women with higher cardiometabolic risk developed greater insulin resistance after sleep restriction, especially postmenopausal women. Another study showed that men and women with elevated heart disease risk had an influx of inflammatory cells in the heart after mild sleep restriction.
The findings strengthen evidence that sufficient sleep plays a role in preventing weight gain and conditions like type 2 diabetes and heart disease. The researchers call for further studies on how improving sleep affects health in chronically sleep-deprived individuals.
