A full night's sleep can burn hundreds of calories, giving the term "beauty sleep" a whole new meaning.
While the body rests at night, it performs a variety of processes like repairing tissue, consolidating memories, storing energy, and regulating hormone levels. But in the meantime, the body also burns up to 500 calories during sleep – about the same as an hour of running.
A new study from Welltech found that a person weighing about 57 kilograms (125 lbs) burns about 38 calories per hour of sleep, which translates to 266 to 342 calories during a 7–9 hour sleep.
A person weighing 68 kilograms (150 lbs) burns about 46 calories per hour, while a person weighing 84 kilograms (185 lbs) burns about 56 calories per hour – for a total of 392 to 504 calories burned overnight.
According to Dr. Cassidy Jenkins, a psychology expert at Welltech, calorie expenditure during sleep depends on the basal metabolic rate (BMR), which is influenced by factors such as weight, age, sex, and overall health.
To calculate BMR:
Men: 66 + (6.2 × weight in pounds) + (12.7 × height in inches) – (6.76 × age in years)
Women: 655.1 + (4.35 × weight) + (4.7 × height) – (4.7 × age)
Then, BMR is divided by 24 to find the hourly caloric expenditure and multiplied by the hours of sleep.
In addition to BMR, the number of calories burned is also affected by body mass, body composition, sleep quality, and existing diseases.
REM (the stage of sleep where dreams occur) is the stage where the most calories are burned. The high brain activity in this stage requires more energy, causing calorie burning to increase.
Although burning up to 500 calories while sleeping is tempting, Dr. Jenkins warns that this should not replace regular physical activity:
"While these numbers are impressive, they should not replace daily exercise. Rather, they underscore the importance of rest and recovery for overall well-being and weight management."
Sleep deprivation remains a serious problem: an estimated 84 million Americans don't get 7–9 hours of sleep a night, while about 20 percent of the population sleeps five hours or less. This leads to higher cortisol levels, increased hunger, a slowed metabolism, and a higher risk of obesity.
To get the most out of sleep:
Maintain a regular sleep schedule: Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day.
Create a suitable sleep environment: A cool (around 18°C), dark and quiet room helps with deeper and more restorative sleep.
Get physical activity during the day: Exercise, especially resistance exercise, increases muscle mass and BMR, increasing calorie burning even during sleep.
Ultimately, sleep care is just as important as physical activity for optimal health. /GazetaExpress/
edition
t7 live
