People undergo calorie-restriction diets for a number of reasons, including efforts to reduce weight or for spiritual or religious reasons. Some patients have undergone calorie reduction as part of a therapeutic strategy to address sleep disorders. Significant evidence suggests that calorie reduction may help some patients with sleep disorders and does not appear to negatively affect sleep in healthy individuals.
Sleep Apnea
People with sleep apnea involuntarily stop breathing while asleep. They may stop breathing for up to a minute or even longer, and it can happen repeatedly, up to hundreds of times a night. This potentially life-threatening disorder is associated with obesity, and researchers have explored the therapeutic potential of low-calorie diets. A 1998 paper published in the journal “Clinical Physiology” reported on a study with 14 men and one woman with sleep apnea. Patients were put on a diet of 600 to 800 calories daily for three months. Researchers concluded that weight-loss through very low calorie diets is an effective treatment for sleep apnea. A similar study published in 1992 in “The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition” also found improvements in sleep apnea symptoms in all 12 patients involved in that study.
Near-Zero Calories
A 2008 study published in “The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition” studied the effects of severe short-term calorie restriction in 27 healthy young subjects. Subjects consumed an average of 313 calories over the course of 48 hours. Researchers were unable to detect any significant effect of the calorie restriction on sleep or cognitive ability.
Low-Calorie Diets in Aging Men
A 2011 study published in the journal “Physiology and Behavior” studied 25 healthy men between the ages 53 and 63. Subjects reduced calories by 300 to 500 calories a day combined with two days per week of total fasting between sunrise and sunset. The study found no significant impact on sleep quality or stress and did show alleviation of depression in the subjects who underwent calorie restriction.
Summary
Calorie reduction does not appear to adversely affect sleep in healthy individuals. Obese patients suffering sleep apnea show improvement with low-calorie diets.
References
- "Physiology and Behavior"; Efficacy of Fasting Calorie Restriction on Quality of Life Among Aging Men.; N.I. Teng et al. ; 2011
- "Clinical Physiology"; The Effect of a Very Low-Calorie Diet-Induced Weight Loss on the Severity of Obstructive Sleep Apnoea; M Kansanen et al.; 1998
- "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition"; A Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Test of 2 d of Calorie Deprivation; H. R Lieberman et al; 2008
- "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition"; Effect of Very-Low-Calorie Diets with Weight Loss on Obstructive Sleep Apnea; Paul M Suratt et al; 1992
- American Sleep Apnea Association; Sleep Apnea; 2011
