Study Links 'Social Jetlag' To Obesity

Is 'Social Jetlag' Making You Fat?

If you’re constantly tired, perhaps your body is following the wrong clock.

Researchers at LMU University in Munich, Germany have suggested that ignoring the 24-hour circadian clock (during which sunlight helps regulate our natural rhythms) in favour of your social calendar, is likely to result in health problems.

The pressures of early starts, social commitments and work, could be contributing to the poor health of up to 80% of people in Western countries, says chronobiologist Professor Till Toenneberg, who defines the problem as "social jetlag”.

Individuals who get too little sleep, due to their busy lifestyles, have an increased body-mass index (BMI), found the LMU team.

In a statement, the researchers indicate that a person whose lifestyle conflicts with their internal physiological rhythms is at greater risk of developing serious metabolic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes.

"The ongoing debate on the usefulness of daylight-saving time (DST) should take note of our findings," remarks Roenneberg, in a statement.

"Just like conventional school and work schedules, DST disrupts our biological clock and subjects us to more social jetlag with all its consequences."

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