Matthew Walker

Perhaps you have also noticed a desire to eat more when you're tired? This is no coincidence. Too ittle sleep swells concentrations of a hormone that makes you eel hungry while suppressing a companion hormone that otherwise signals food satisfaction. Despite being full, you still want to eat more. It's a proven recipe for weight gain in sleep- deñcient adults and children alike. Worse, should you attempt to diet but don't get enough sleep while doing so, it is futile, since most of the weight you lose will come from lean body mass, not fat. Add the above health consequences up, and a proven link becomes easier to accept: the shorter your sleep, the shorter your life span. The old maxim Il sleep when I'm dead" is therefore unfortunate. Adopt this mind-set, and you will be dead sooner and the quality of that (shorter) life will be worse.