repoman
Contributor
I was thinking about how sleep patterns effect how we eat and how healthy we are. I think that may be at the center of this. It is surprising how long we can go without eating when we sleep, even compared to laying down all day doing nothing. It also seems that the more steady the sleep pattern I have the less famished I feel waking up and the less I binge on food at night.
here is a somewhat related article (actually press release): http://www.salk.edu/news/pressrelease_details.php?press_id=553
I also wonder how alcohol fits in. Maybe when you drink at night your liver can't store as much sugar since it is working to detox the alcohol.
here is a somewhat related article (actually press release): http://www.salk.edu/news/pressrelease_details.php?press_id=553
During the day, humans burn glucose, derived from the food we eat. This is the fuel that supplies the muscles and other parts of the body expending energy. At night, when we sleep, we revert to stored fat as a source of very dependable but slowly released energy. But certain parts of the body, most notably the brain, require glucose as a source of energy, even when we fast.
Pancreatic islet cells control both sides of this energy equation. Located in the pancreas, they produce glucagon, a hormone released during fasting, to tell the liver to make glucose for use by the brain. This process is reversed when we feed, and when the pancreatic islets release insulin, which tells the liver to stop making glucose.
Thus glucagon and insulin are part of a feedback system designed to keep blood glucose at a stable level.
I also wonder how alcohol fits in. Maybe when you drink at night your liver can't store as much sugar since it is working to detox the alcohol.