[Reddalice]

Between work and school, I find myself low on sleep ALL THE TIME. Recently I have noticed that when I am really tired, and unable to sleep, I munch... a lot. It's something like an on going grazing and then a FINALE which is swallowed up in guilt as I toddle to my bed and crash. Does anyone else do this? I know good sleep is related to weightloss... could it be that people who sleep more eat less?

[Ravengirl]

Yes! Definitely! I have run across it in quite a few news articles talking about weight and sleep... When you are sleep deprived more things happen than just sleepiness... Your hormones, chemicals, everything get out of whack as well. Your body actually drives you to food because of the lack of energy... Does it to me every time, I catch myself wanting to munch any time I am running low on energy due to poor sleep, my cycle, sometimes not getting enough exercise will trigger it as well. There is also a difference if I think about it when the craving or urge to eat hits..I can actually feel that I am tired instead of hungry but sadly sometimes knowing it is still not enough to stop it from happening. Find something that you like well enough that it is a distraction and try to ride the urge out for a few minutes before giving in...if it is possible go to sleep!!! If you are having trouble sleeping I have run across alot of things that are helping...meditation...deep breathing...yoga!!! Hope you find at least something in all this that helps...if not, well...hugs to you anyway!!

[Janie Canuck]

I have read that too - one "helpful hint" for weight loss is to ensure that you get enough sleep. My worst munchie times are in the evening and coming home after a day at work - 2 times when I feel tired. I practically never have difficulty eating well early in the day - only as the day wears on and I wear out!

[ImpalaHoarder]

I know what you mean. I tend to run on about 4 hours of sleep a night on week days, so I'm like that all the time, pretty much.

I find that it helps to get yourself as far away from food as possible so you don't do it unconciously, get yourself something to do (which you probably already have if you're up late), or, if it's not working, have some water. It usually works for me, especially if it's seltzer.

I also find that I feel really sick to my stomach if I don't sleep enough after a while. Maybe it balances out a bit.

[Me23]

Totally....late at night is the worst time for me to eat. I travel quite a bit (between college, home, London for other things) and on those days I have to get up at an ungodly hour I could just munch all day. My tips for a good night's sleep
- exercise during the day. the absolute number one.
- shower/bath before bed
- don't try to go to sleep before you're tired. read till you want to sleep, then put the light out.
Hope those help you.
Now if I could just get up the confidence to ask my college neighbour to shut the BLEEP up after a certain hour we might be getting somewhere, lol