Poor sleep affects your partner’s diet

You finally fall into a deep sleep only to hear your alarm go off. Getting out of bed or even having breakfast can feel difficult after a poor night’s sleep.

Lack of sleep can affect more than just your energy. It may also influence the foods you choose often making junk and fast food more tempting.

But can your partner’s sleep affect what you eat?

A new study suggests that it can.

Researchers examined how one partner’s sleep habits may influence the other partner’s eating choices.  The study published in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine, included 204 couples.

The researchers collected information about the participants sleep and diet at the beginning of the study, after one month and again after three months.

The couples also completed daily questionnaires for 14 days to report how much effort they made to choose healthy foods.

Poor sleep may affect both partners

The findings showed that when one person in a couple experienced poor sleep their partner was also more likely to make less healthy food choices. This connection was seen even when the partner’s own sleep quality was good.

Researchers found that partners of people experiencing sleep problems tended to eat fewer healthy foods. They also appeared less likely to make an effort to choose nutritious options.

The study could not determine exactly why this happens. However researchers believe that couples may influence each other’s daily habits because they spend a lot of time together.

For example if one partner frequently craves fast food, the other person may be more likely to join them.  Over time these shared choices can become part of the couple’s normal routine.

The researchers noted that the study was observational so it cannot prove that poor sleep directly causes unhealthy eating habits.

However the findings suggest that sleep and food choices may be connected not only within individuals but also between partners.