Lack Of Sleep Can Lead To Weight Gain

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MIAMI (CBSMiami) - If you don't sleep well during the night, you may be experiencing more than just a little grumpiness.

You may also notice the effects when you step on the scale.

It's an everyday battle. Getting to bed on-time, setting your alarm for the next day, and sometimes even counting the few hours of sleep you're hoping to get.

"You know caffeine, or trying to think 'yes, I can have this soda before I go to bed', that sort of thing," said Sarah Sporrer.

After struggling with sleep for years, Sporrer noticed the effects on her body and knew it was time to make changes.

"Changing my diet was a big thing and then adding in exercise as well helped with my sleep patterns, " Sporrer said.

Eric Noyes with Avera Health says it's not uncommon to see weight gain when you're not getting enough sleep.

"The normal hormones that make us hungry, those see a spike if we've missed sleep and then some of the hormones that our body uses to regulate our appetite to keep us from getting hungry, we run out of those," Noyes said.

Noyes said adults need between 7 and 9 hours of sleep to function properly and try to avoid random napping.

"Short naps can be very helpful for some people, but it needs to be a part of your everyday routine, not just I'll catch up on Sunday afternoon," Noyes said.

Noyes suggests setting a strict bedtime and sticking to it,

Also, it's not just sleep impacting your diet, it's also what you eat impacts your sleep.

"Don't eat late. Don't eat the heavier foods later at night because you tend to build more fat with those carbs that you're eating if you're not active afterward," Noyes said.

But if you find yourself craving a midnight snack, opt for something light to keep off unwanted pounds and get better sleep.

Sporrer says these small changes have made a big difference in her life.

"The weight loss has been great. The diet change has been a real help as well. And then just keeping that same sleeping pattern, trying to get in that 6 to 8 hours of sleep a day," Sporrer said.