A new study has determined that sleeping in during the weekends might actually do you more harm than good. The research's findings suggest that disruptions to your regular sleeping patterns can increase the risk for developing metabolic diseases such as heart disease and diabetes, according to University Herald.
The study explores a fairly, new yet significant, concept called "social jetlag," which works a lot like regular old jetlag, except that it gets triggered by your body clock getting thrown off by the gap between your weekend and your weekday sleep schedules.
Apart from heart disease and diabetes, social jetlag is also linked to various other unwanted maladies, such as poor mood and a tendency to experience difficulties in focusing. Apart from these, it has also been linked to obesity and a higher body mass index, Business Insider reported.
In fact, the adverse effects of social jetlag have been so stark that the negative findings persisted on the study's sample size even after the researchers accounted for outside factors such as the person's exercise, eating and drinking habits.
Overall, the findings state that the bigger the gap between a person's sleep schedule on the weekend and on the weekday, the stronger the negative findings become.
The good news, however, is that there is actually a simple fix for social jetlag. All you need to do is wake up at the same time every day. Doing so prevents your body from feeling disrupted when it comes to your sleeping habits. So, during the weekends, set your alarm for a reasonable hour. Your body will surely be grateful.
The study was published in the Nov. 18 issue of the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.
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