New Research From Prenuvo Uncovers Connection Between Sleep, Belly Fat and Brain Health

A study of more than 14,000 adults explores how sleep patterns are associated with visceral fat and brain volume

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Oct. 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Prenuvo, the global leader in whole-body MRI screening, today released new research examining the relationship between sleep patterns, brain health and metabolic health in 14,031 adults who underwent Prenuvo whole-body MRI scans. Conducted in collaboration with leading sleep scientists Dr. Matthew Walker and Dr. Eti Ben Simon, of the Sleep Innovation Labs at UT Dallas, the study explores how measures of sleep duration and efficiency relate to imaging-based markers of health.

Sleep health may be about more than just how many hours you get. Researchers examined both sleep duration (how long a person sleeps) and sleep efficiency (how much of their time in bed is spent asleep) alongside whole-body MRI data from more than 14,000 adults.

The findings revealed notable associations between sleep patterns and markers of health:

• Higher sleep efficiency was associated with lower visceral fat, the fat stored deep within the abdomen around internal organs.
• Higher sleep efficiency was also associated with greater parietal gray matter volume, a region of the brain involved in functions including high-level sensory processing and spatial awareness.
• Sleeping longer than 8 hours was associated with smaller hippocampal volume. The hippocampus plays an important role in learning and memory.

These findings highlight potential connections between sleep patterns, metabolic health and brain structure. They also underscore why sleep health may be about more than simply counting the hours spent in bed.

"Sleep duration and sleep efficiency are often treated as interchangeable, but our findings suggest they may relate differently to brain structure and visceral fat," said Dr. Alex Exuzides, VP and Head of Research & Medical Affairs at Prenuvo. "By studying these relationships across a large imaging dataset, we can begin to better understand how sleep and different aspects of health intersect. Longitudinal research will help us understand whether the associations can inform preventive care."

Conducted in collaboration with researchers at UT Dallas, the study leveraged Prenuvo's whole-body MRI to examine the brain and abdomen in a single scan. The research builds on Prenuvo's broader efforts to advance proactive, preventive medicine through its Prenuvo Research Network, to connect scientists and academic institutions with AI tools and an Imaging Biobank containing more than 200,000 scans.

"The scale and breadth of Prenuvo's whole-body MRI imaging offer a unique opportunity to examine how sleep patterns relate to both brain and metabolic health, giving us a broader view of how these systems may be interconnected," added Dr. Eti Ben Simon, PhD, Associate Director of the Sleep Innovation Laboratories and Research Assistant Professor at UT Dallas' Center for BrainHealth.

Looking to build better sleep habits? Explore Prenuvo's guide here.

About the Study
The analysis drew on whole-body MRI scans and sleep information from 14,031 adults (with an average age of 50; 58% men) who received Prenuvo's whole-body MRI. Sleep length and efficiency came from medical intake questions based on the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, a widely used sleep questionnaire. The researchers measured volumes across the brain, including total and regional gray matter, the hippocampus, and the amygdala, as well as visceral fat, and adjusted for age, sex, body mass index, scanner location, and for brain measures, head size.

About Prenuvo

Prenuvo makes proactive health screening seamless and more widely accessible. Combining high-quality technology with radiation-free and non-invasive imaging assessments, Prenuvo's patient-centric design is optimized to help assess the body holistically, providing individuals with a detailed overview of their health. Prenuvo's exclusively-affiliated Radiology Group Partners consist of 100+ radiologists who help risk-stratify each patient report, keeping in mind healthcare complexities from the patient's perspective, the treating clinician's perspective, and the healthcare system's perspective.

Prenuvo currently operates in 26 clinics across North America, Australia, and Europe. To find your nearest Prenuvo, please visit here. Learn more at www.prenuvo.com.

Media Contact:
Christine Alabastro
[email protected] 

SOURCE Prenuvo