In a long-term study of middle-aged women, those who slept 5 hours or less each night were more likely to gain a significant amount of weight or become obese during 16 years of follow-up than women who slept 7 hours each night.
This level of weight gain -- 15 kg, or 33 pounds -- is "very clinically significant in terms of risk of diabetes and heart disease," said Dr. Sanjay Patel of Case Western Reserve University.
Women who slept 6 hours nightly were also more likely to experience major weight gain or to become obese compared with those who slept 7 hours each night.
The 68,183 women in the study provided information in 1986 on their typical night's sleep and reported their weight every 2 years for 16 years. The findings were presented at the American Thoracic Society's International Conference in San Diego on May 23 2006.
After accounting for the influence of age and weight at the beginning of the study, women who slept less than 7 hours gained more weight during the follow-up than those who slept 7 hours regularly. The researchers analyzed the diets and physical activity levels of the women, but failed to find any differences that could explain why women who slept less weighed more.
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