9 Ways You Can Literally Lose Weight in Your Sleep

Dr. Nusbaum was recently interviewed by Readers Digest on 9 Ways You Can Literally Lose Weight in Your Sleep.

At night, your body burns the most calories during REM sleep. But if you imbibe too much, too close to bedtime, your body will focus on metabolizing the alcohol and prevent you from spending as much time in the sleep state of REM, according to Psychology Today. And that’s just part of the problem. “Our brain would rather burn carbohydrates, just like the rest of the body, and alcohol is basically made from fermented sugars,” explains Michael Jay Nusbaum, MD, Chief of Bariatric Surgery at Morristown Medical Center and Surgical Director of the Metabolic Medicine and Weight Control Center for Atlantic Health. “Guess what happens to those alcohol sugars in your body? They tie up the liver, which now has to detoxify the alcohol, and stops the body from converting the fat cells to ketones, [interfering] in the fat-burning process.” Plus, he explains, when the alcohol breaks down, its byproducts are high in calories. The bottom line: A glass of wine with dinner is OK, but you should stop drinking a few hours before bedtime.