Men who do not receive a good night’s sleep may be prone to obesity, according to a new study from the European Centre for Taste Sciences. The study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, found study participants consumed 22 percent more calories with an average calorie increase of about 560 after the short night of sleep. The researchers suggest people may eat more after a short night of sleep because mammals have evolved to store up calories in the summer, when nights are short and food is plentiful.

Twelve men completed a randomized two-condition crossover study. During the first night of each 48-hour session, subjects had either eight hours (from midnight to 8:00 a.m.) or four hours (from 2:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m.) of sleep. All foods consumed subsequently (jam on buttered toast for breakfast, buffet for lunch, and a free menu for dinner) were eaten ad libitum.

Physical activity was recorded by an actimeter. Feelings of hunger, perceived pleasantness of the foods, desire to eat some foods, and sensation of sleepiness were also evaluated.

In comparison with the eight-hour sleep session, subjects consumed 559 ± 617 kcal (i.e., 22 percent) more energy on the day after sleep restriction (P<0.01), and preprandial hunger was higher before breakfast (P<0.001) and dinner (P<0.05). No change in the perceived pleasantness of the foods or in the desire to eat the foods was observed. Physical activity from 12:15 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. was higher after sleep restriction than after eight hours of sleep (P<0.01), even though the sensation of sleepiness was more marked (P<0.01).

ABSTRACT

Background: Acute partial sleep deprivation increases plasma concentrations of ghrelin and decreases those of leptin.

Objective: The objective was to observe modifications in energy intake and physical activity after acute partial sleep deprivation in healthy men.

Design: Twelve men [age: 22 ± 3 y; body mass index (in kg/m²): 22.30 ± 1.83] completed a randomized 2-condition crossover study. During the first night of each 48-h session, subjects had either ~ 8 h (from midnight to 0800) or ~4 h (from 0200 to 0600) of sleep. All foods consumed subsequently (jam on buttered toast for breakfast, buffet for lunch, and a free menu for dinner) were eaten ad libitum. Physical activity was recorded by an actimeter. Feelings of hunger, perceived pleasantness of the foods, desire to eat some foods, and sensation of sleepiness were also evaluated.

Results: In comparison with the 8-h sleep session, subjects consumed 559 ± 617 kcal (ie, 22%) more energy on the day after sleep restriction (P < 0.01), and preprandial hunger was higher before breakfast (P < 0.001) and dinner (P < 0.05). No change in the perceived pleasantness of the foods or in the desire to eat the foods was observed. Physical activity from 1215 to 2015 was higher after sleep restriction than after 8 h of sleep (P < 0.01), even though the sensation of sleepiness was more marked (P < 0.01).

Conclusions: One night of reduced sleep subsequently increased food intake and, to a lesser extent, estimated physical activity–related energy expenditure in healthy men. These experimental results, if confirmed by long-term energy balance measurements, suggest that sleep restriction could be a factor that promotes obesity. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00986492.

Received for publication August 12, 2009. Accepted for publication March 4, 2010.

Laurent Brondel, Michael A Romer, Pauline M Nougues, Peio Touyarou and Damien Davenne

From the Centre Europe’en des Sciences du Gou^t Dijon Cedex France (LB MAR PMNPT); the Service d’He’pato-Gastroente’rologie du CHU de Dijon Dijon France (LB); the UFR de Me’decine de l’Universite’ de Bourgogne Dijon France (LB);INSERM ERI 27 Universite’ de Caen Caen France (DD).

Supported by a grant from the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (France) and the Regional University Hospital of Caen, France.

Address correspondence to L Brondel, Centre Europe’en des Sciences du Gou^t, 15 rue Hugues Picardet, 21000 Dijon Cedex, France. E-mail: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).