Study says kids’ sleeping habits affect likelihood of obesity

Early to bed and early to rise may keep a child from being obese. From Google Images.

An Australian study published in the journal Sleep shows that kids who are “early to bed and early to rise” are less likely to become obese than those who are not.

Researchers from the University of South Australia studied the bedtimes and rising times of 2,200 Australian children aged nine to 16 and discovered  that children who went to bed late and got up late were one and a half times more likely to become obese than those who in the habit of going to bed early and getting up early. Data also showed that kids who stayed up late were also almost two times as likely to be physically inactive and 2.9 times more likely to watch more TV or play video games longer than guidelines recommend.

Study co-author Carol Maher said, “The children who went to bed late and woke up late, and the children who went to bed early and woke up early got virtually the same amount of sleep in total…Scientists have realized in recent years that children who get less sleep tend to do worse on a variety of health outcomes, including the risk of being overweight and obese. Our study suggests that the timing of sleep is even more important.”

Maher attributes the trend to early risers getting more exercise early in the day. She asserts that kids are not as distracted with sedentary activities in the morning (prime time tv and such), so it’s easier to engage in physical activity.

Source: foxnews.com