Dr. Melissa McCreery of TooMuchOnHerPlate.com is back with more slimming secrets!  And while the findings below are very exciting, they’re meant to put you to sleep.  Check out this dreamy way to keep the weight off:

Could squeezing in more sleep help you lose weight?

Women who are short on time and juggling many responsibilities often scrimp on sleep. You know it’s not the best way to go, but sometimes it just seems like the easiest solution.

Here’s something you need to know: going without sleep is likely to sabotage you BIG TIME. You probably know that lack of sleep affects your mood and your concentration, but did you know that sleep deprivation alters your body chemistry and sets you up for weight gain? Missing out on sleep can actually cause you to BE hungrier and skimping on sleep appears to cause weight gain whether or not you eat more! It’s not just in your head. Short-term sleep deprivation leads to lower levels of leptin, a hormone that tells us when we are full, and increase levels of the hormone ghrelin, which promotes appetite. Have you had the experience after a night of little sleep where you feel like you can eat everything in sight and never feel full? That’s the low leptin, high ghrelin effect.

Sleep restriction appears to cause physiologic effects that may actually lead to weight gain, and (here’s the fascinating part) this may be at least partially independent of how much you actually eat. In one study involving over 68,000 women who were followed for 16 years, the one fact that a subject usually slept less than seven hours a night was predictive of weight gain, including a substantial increased risk of major weight gain and obesity. Women who regularly slept five hours or less were 32% more likely to have gained at least 33 pounds over the 16 years than those who slept 7-8 hours.

What does this mean? It means that sleep is an essential part of you being at your best. Make the pursuit of those seven uninterrupted hours a priority and you’re less likely to find yourself struggling with overeating and weight.

Psychologist and Emotional Eating and Overwhelm Eliminator Dr. Melissa McCreery helps smart busy women get to the root of overwhelm and overeating so that they can create the changes they want and the lives that they crave. Download her free audios: 5 Simple Steps to Move Beyond Overwhelm with Food and Life at http://TooMuchOnHerPlate.com

Want to hear more from Dr. McCreery?

Brigette & Jenny of SqueezeItIn.com will be her guests on a free TooMuchOnHerPlate.com Teleseminar on May 5 at 6pm EST. Join us to learn about making fitness fit at the office and on the road. Click here to sign up and learn more.

Please note: The information provided here is for educational purposes only. It is not a substitute for the advice or treatment given by your doctor or dietitian. Please consult with a registered dietitian or your doctor if you have any questions about the information in this post.