The effects of eating before sleeping on a person's body and sleep quality are dependent on how much time is left between eating and sleeping and the amount of food eaten, according to NineMSN.
Weight Gain
When you eat is
not nearly as important as how much you eat. In order to lose weight,
you must burn off more calories than you take in. it doesn’t matter if
you take all of the extra calories in first thing in the morning or last
thing at night. Eating late at night has other dangers, including the
impaired judgment and weakened willpower than can come with being tired.
When you’re hungry at midnight, taking the time to make a salad may not
be as appealing as reaching for the ice cream or finishing the leftover
pizza. Making unhealthy decisions right before going to sleep means
that you have no chance to burn off those extra calories.
Heartburn
Lying flat on
your back right after a large meal may feel good at first, but while
your body is resting, your digestive system in hard at work. Heartburn
is caused by an excess of stomach acid, which results in a burning
sensation that spreads up from your stomach into your chest and
sometimes up into your throat. It can also be accompanied by burping.
This can make it difficult to get a good night’s sleep.
Acid Reflux
Gastroesophageal
reflux disease, also called GERD or acid re flux, is caused by the valve
between your stomach and esophagus not closing all the way. This allows
stomach acid to back up into your throat, which causes a burning
sensation. Lying down flat on your back right after a meal can aggravate
this condition. Left untreated, the stomach acid washing up into your
esophagus can damage the mucous membranes.
Stroke
Going to sleep
right after a meal can increase your chances of having a stroke,
according to a study done at the University of Ioannina Medical School
in Greece. The study, which focused on 500 healthy people -- 250 who had
previously experienced strokes and 250 who were diagnosed with acute
coronary syndrome -- found that those who waited the longest between
eating and sleeping were at the lowest risk for stroke. Theories differ
as to why, but they include the idea that acid re flux is more likely to
cause sleep apnea, which is linked to strokes. Another theory is that
the act of digestion and its effects on your blood pressure, blood-sugar
levels and cholesterol count may affect your likelihood of having a
stroke. More studies are needed to confirm this.
Credit: #livestrong
