Q I often work late and don't get enough sleep. I'm in my late thirties, and my belly fat just won't come off. Do sleep and stress also have to do with visceral fat?
A Yes. Lack of sleep and chronic stress disrupt appetite and storage hormones, making fat pile up on the abdomen. Sleeping well and managing stress are as important as diet and exercise.
Detailed Answer
When you don't get enough sleep, the hormone that boosts appetite rises and the fullness hormone drops, leading to overeating, and chronic stress raises cortisol, which stores fat especially in the abdomen. In other words, no matter how little you eat, if you can't sleep and stress is severe, visceral fat may not come off well. Regular sleep and stress management are the third pillar of dieting, alongside diet and exercise.
Our Korean Medicine Clinic's Perspective
Dongjedang sees sleep and stress as a matter of "the time and room for metabolism to recover." When the body can't rest, circulation stays in a tense state, unable to empty the surplus and instead storing it up. We treat sleeping well and releasing tension together as one pillar of the management that empties the body at night and revives metabolism.
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