Study When children sleep too little, they get fat faster

Parents should take care of adequate sleep with their children

More and more children today are suffering from overweight and obesity. Researchers have now found that if children get too little sleep, it increases the risk of obesity.

Researchers at the University of Warwick found in their current research that sleep deprivation in children leads to an increased risk of obesity. The physicians published the results of their study in the English-language journal "SLEEP".

People of all ages need adequate sleep. He is important for physical and mental health. If children do not sleep regularly enough, the risk of developing obesity later in life increases. (Image: Africa Studio / fotolia.com)

Regular adequate sleep is very important for children

Of course, all parents want to make it possible for their children to grow up as healthy as possible and not to get overweight and obesity as early as childhood. However, it is not only about the nutrition of children, but also regular sleep is extremely important. If children and adolescents regularly sleep too little, they will be more likely to be overweight and obese as they get older.

Sleep is a modifiable risk factor for future obesity

"Obesity can lead to cardiovascular diseases and type 2 diabetes, which also increase in children. The study's findings suggest that sleep may be an important potentially modifiable risk factor (or marker) for future obesity, "explains study author Dr. Michelle Miller from Warwick Medical School in a press release.

42 studies were evaluated

The authors of the article examined the results of 42 population studies in infants, children and adolescents aged 0 to 18 years with a total of 75,499 participants. Their average sleep duration has been evaluated by a variety of methods, from questionnaires to portable technology, the researchers explain.

Subjects were divided into two groups

The participants were divided into two classes: short and normal sleepers. Short sleepers were children who got less sleep than the reference category for their age. These were based on the latest National Sleep Foundation guidelines in the US, which recommend that infants (4 to 11 months) get between 12-15 hours sleep, that infants (1-2 years) sleep 11-14 hours, children in the Preschool (3-5 years) should sleep 10-13 hours and school-age children (6-13 years) between 9-11 hours. Teenagers (14-17 years) are advised to sleep 8-10 hours.

Short sleepers gained weight

Participants were medically monitored over a median of three years. Changes in BMI and obesity and / or obesity were recorded over time. In all age groups, short sleepers gained weight and overall had an increased probability of developing 58 percent overweight and obesity. "The results showed a consistent relationship across all age groups, suggesting that the increased risk is present in both younger and older children. The study also reaffirms the concept that sleep deprivation is an important risk factor for obesity that can be detected at a very early stage in life. Miller.

Results were consistent

By evaluating the different study results, it was found that, despite some differences between the studies, there is a strikingly consistent overall prospective association between short sleep and obesity, study author Professor Francesco Cappuccio explains. "This study builds on our previous analysis of cross-sectional data in 2008. The significance of the latest approach is that only prospective longitudinal studies have been included that show that short sleep precedes the development of obesity in later years, strongly suggesting causality, "the expert adds.

WHO explains obesity to the epidemic

The prevalence of obesity has increased worldwide and the World Health Organization (WHO) has now declared obesity a global epidemic. The authors of the article emphasize that while healthy eating and exercise are important, the results of the study show that it is also important to get enough sleep. Physicians suggest that educational programs could be used to help parents and children maximize their amount of sleep. (As)