Introduction:

As a result of the high prevalence of obesity worldwide and nationally, and because of the incidence of this disease in the development of comorbidities, studying the factors that contribute to its development is necessary. The lack or disrupted sleep that is affecting our civilization, has been associated with the worldwide epidemic of obesity, being a modifiable factor to include in its therapy.

Objective:

To find recent evidence about the underlying mechanisms that build a possible relationship between sleep duration and/or quality with the development of obesity in adults.

Methods:

The search of articles was carried out by using virtual platforms of bibliographic databases, which were filtered by: age (18 to 64 years), human studies, full text, English and Spanish language and publications no longer than 5 years. Studies that evaluated sleep quality had to apply the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and those that evaluated chronotype had to use the Horne and Ostberg’s Morningness - Eveningness Questionnaire or the Munich Chronotype Questionnaire

Results:

Individuals with insufficient sleep duration and/or quality were more likely to become obese. Underlying mechanisms found were hormonal and metabolic alterations and an increase in food intake, mainly during the biological night

Conclusions:

According to the selected bibliography, there is scientific evidence linking sleep duration and/or quality with the possible development of obesity in adults

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