The overall goal is to determine how a sleep extension intervention (increasing time in bed) in individuals who maintain less than 6.5 hours sleep per night affects their plasma ceramides and insulin sensitivity. Participants will undergo a randomized controlled trial, with sleep extension (intervention) and healthy lifestyle (control) groups. The sleep extension is designed to increase participant's time in bed by 2 hours per night. Alternatively, the control group will receive basic health information (e.g., physical activity, goal setting, and nutrition when eating out).
Age: 18-45 years old; equal numbers of men and women
Body mass index (BMI): 27.5-34.9 kg/m2
Sleep Habits: habitual self-reported average total sleep time (TST) <6.5 hours per night for prior 6 months
Clinically diagnosed sleep disorder or major psychiatric illness
Evidence of significant organ dysfunction or disease (e.g., heart disease, kidney disease)
Clinically diagnosed diabetes or fasting plasma glucose ≥126 mg/dL or HbA1c ≥6.5%
Use of prescription drugs or substances known to influence sleep or glucose metabolism, or anticoagulant medications.