Study links shorter sleep and sugar-sweetened drink consumption

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2016-11/uoc--sls110416.php

Public Release: 9-Nov-2016
Study links shorter sleep and sugar-sweetened drink consumption
Treating sleep deprivation could potentially help reduce sugar intake, say UC San Francisco researchers
University of California - San Francisco

People who sleep five or fewer hours a night are likely to also drink significantly more sugary caffeinated drinks, such as sodas and energy drinks, according to a new study of more than 18,000 adults led by UC San Francisco scientists.

The authors emphasize that it's not yet clear whether drinking sugar-sweetened beverages causes people to sleep less, or whether sleep deprivation makes people seek out more sugar and caffeine to stay awake, though previous research suggests both could be true.

"We think there may be a positive feedback loop where sugary drinks and sleep loss reinforce one another, making it harder for people to eliminate their unhealthy sugar habit," said lead author Aric A. Prather, PhD, assistant professor of psychiatry at UCSF. "This data suggests that improving people's sleep could potentially help them break out of the cycle and cut down on their sugar intake, which we know to be linked to metabolic disease."

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