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Link Found Between Overweight Children and a Lack of Sleep

August 8, 2008 – A recent study released in the Archives of General Psychiatry found a link between children and adolescents who are overweight and a lack of sleep.
The study was conducted by University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Researchers studied 335 children with standard polysomnography for 3 nights along with height and weight assessments. The study found that the body mass index was significantly related to sleep length, sleep efficiency and REM density. The overweight children (when compared to normal-weight children) slept about 22 minutes less and had lower sleep efficiency, shorter REM sleep, lower REM activity.
For more information on the study, visit the Archives of General Psychiatry web site: http://archpsyc.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/short/65/8/924
(Michelle Uhri)