Sleep Your Way to Weight Loss - Arianna Huffington's Wake Up Call & Research Studies Connection Sleep Deprivation and Weight Gain!

Wouldn’t it be great if you could sleep your way to losing weight for swimsuit season?

You can do just that according to current medical research. Studies suggest there is a direct correlation between getting a good night’s sleep and gaining or losing weight.

In her new book, "Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder," Arianna Huffington talks about how sleep deprivation can lead to obesity, as well as have other serious repercussions. Arianna experienced her own health scare from sleep deprivation. After passing out from exhaustion one night and waking up in a pool of blood Arianna decided to take action. Thrive is her personal story about the journey to restore her relationship to sleep.

Studies now suggest that during sleep your body silently regulates the hormonal activity that controls your appetite.

According to Dr. David Rapoport, MD, associate professor and director of the Sleep Medicine Program at the New York University of Medicine in New York City, "One of the more interesting ideas that is now gaining momentum is the appreciation of the fact that sleep and sleep disruption do remarkable things to the body -- including possibly influencing our weight."

While we’ve known about hormones being affected by sleep Rapoport says, “It wasn't until recently that appetite entered the picture.” Recent hormonal research shows that the production of the appetite controlling hormones ghrelin and leptin are directly influenced by the quality of your sleep. Ghrelin stimulates your appetite while leptin signals your brain that your appetite is satisfied.

Michael Breus, PhD of the Atlanta School of Sleep Medicine and director of The Sleep Disorders Centers of Southeastern Lung Care in Atlanta explains, “When you don’t get enough sleep, it drives leptin levels down, which means you don’t feel as satisfied after you eat. Lack of sleep also causes ghrelin levels to rise, which means your appetite is stimulated, so you want more food. The two combined, he says, can set the stage for overeating, which in turn may lead to weight gain.”

Next time you have a sleepless night do a simple self test by noticing if you have more uncontrollable urges to eat. Making the body mind connection between your appetite and the quality of your sleep can help you to make necessary changes in your sleep habits for losing weight in time for swimsuit season.

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