Sleep change can add fat Hormone levels linked to deep slumber in men

A man loses the ability to sleep deeply at a surprisingly earlyage, and this can lead to middle age love handles, University ofChicago researchers report.

Men under age 26 spend 19 percent of their sleep time in thedeepest stages of sleep. After age 35, generally, they spend lessthan 5 percent of sleep time in deep sleep.

Men secrete growth hormones while in deep sleep. Thus, growthhormone levels drop as men age and sleep deteriorates. In turn,reduced growth hormone levels lead to weight gain, muscle loss andreduced exercise capacity.

Researcher Eve Van Cauter and colleagues studied the relationbetween sleep patterns and growth hormones in 149 healthy men aged …