Dt. Shruti
Bariatric Dietician & Content Writer
Obesity and Sleep: How Your Lifestyle Choices Affect Both
It’s easy to forget the importance of sleep and healthy habits for our wellbeing in our busy life. However, did you know that your lifestyle can affect both the quality of your sleep and how much weight you gain? In this blog, we’ll take a closer look at how your lifestyle choices can affect obesity and sleep, and what you can do to improve both.
Eating Habits: Your weight and ability to get a good night’s sleep are both greatly affected by what you consume. Foods high in sugar and fat can lead to weight gain and make it harder for you to fall asleep. However, maintaining a healthy weight and getting better sleep can be done through eating a balanced diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
Here are some foods that can help you sleep better:
Warm Milk with Turmeric
Almonds
Bananas
Yogurt
Chamomile Tea
Exercise Routine: Being physically active on a regular basis helps you sleep better and maintain a healthy weight. Engaging in physical activity can aid in weight loss, muscle growth, and stress reduction, all of which are beneficial to general health. Try to fit in at least 30 minutes of moderate exercise each day, such as riding a bike, dancing, jogging, or walking.
Screen Time: Too Much time spent in front of screens, such as TVs, PCs, and phones, might affect your sleep quality and weight. Screen’s blue light can interfere with your body’s normal circadian rhythm and make it more difficult for you to fall asleep at night. Furthermore, sedentary behaviors—which are linked to excessive screen time—can worsen weight gain. Limit the amount of time you spend on screens, especially before bed. To help you relax, establish a calming nighttime ritual.
Stress Management: Stress is a common factor that might have affected your sleep quality and weight. Stress causes your body to release hormones like cortisol, which can boost hunger and cause overeating in food. You may find it more difficult to relax and fall asleep at night if you’re stressed. Maintaining a healthy weight and getting better sleep can be achieved by practicing stress-reduction techniques like mindfulness, meditation, or deep breathing exercises.
Sleep Environment: Your sleeping environment can make a big difference in how well you sleep. You can fall asleep more quickly and stay asleep longer by setting up a comfortable and calm sleeping space. Invest on a comfortable mattress and pillows, and make sure your bedroom is quiet, dark, and cool. Also, try to create a regular sleep routine and stick to it, especially on the weekends, in order to help your body’s natural clock adjust.
Both your weight and the quality of your sleep are greatly affected by the lifestyle choices you make. You can improve the quality of your sleep as well as your physical health with healthy habits including eating a balanced diet, exercising, reducing stress, and setting up a comfortable sleeping environment. Remember, small changes can add up to big results, so start making positive changes today for a healthier, happier you!