sleeping

Photo by socal1972

I might be able to stick to this diet. That is, if I'm not having trouble sleeping.

All you have to do is shut your eyes and dream (hopefully about hot men and winning the lottery).

The Sleep Diet sounds too good to be true.

Supposedly, Jennifer Lopez is a big fan of The Sleep Diet, and she gets 10 hours a night to maintain her beauty and her body. That sounds great. But there's no way the average mom of twins, especially baby twins, can squeeze in 10 hours of sleep without a team of nannies and housekeepers.

But maybe we could all get a little more. Studies show some fascinating links between sleep and weight, says WebMD. Sleep and not sleeping do lots of strange things to our bodies. Research has shown that when we don't sleep, we might feel hungrier. This is because production of the hormones leptin and ghrelin are disrupted. And both hormones are related to appetite and feeling satisfied.

Put simply, poor sleep = overeating. People who don't sleep might crave 45 percent more carbs and high-calorie foods than people who get their Zzzzs.

So here's how to go on The Sleep Diet:

  • Get a minimum of 7.5 hours of sleep per night.
  • Drink no caffeine after 2:30 p.m.
  • Sleep at the same time every night, and wake at the same time every morning.

According to an upcoming article in the March issue of Glamour magazine, people who did this lost 6 to 15 pounds in 10 weeks without making other deliberate changes in their diet and exercise routines.

Whether The Sleep Diet is fad or fiction, sleeping more would be good for all of us. The National Sleep Foundation says the average woman gets only 6 hours and 40 minutes each night.

Two CafeMoms who could definitely use more sleep--according to their recent journal posts--are halfadozenofem and Erin333. We wish you Zzzs.

What do you think? Would you be able to try the sleep diet? Do you think you need more sleep?