Trying to lose weight? This could be the easiest method EVER

Scientists have said the best way to lose weight is to get a good night's sleep

SCIENTISTS are saying if you want to lose weight it could be as simple as just getting a good night's sleep.

 

Last year, a record breaking two out of three women tried to lose weight, and it’s estimated that the average UK woman spends a staggering £25,000 on diets over the cost of a lifetime. 

But the word on the street is there's a direct correlation between  the less shut-eye a person gets, and how much they eat. 

When we are tired, the hormones controlling appetite are affected, so people feel hungrier, and find it more difficult to stick to diets. 

After a night of tossing and turning, levels of ghrellin - the 'hunger hormone' which stimulates appetite - are higher, according to the study.

 

This woman looks stressed, but being relaxed usually means you won't emotionally eat

Silentnight sleep expert, Dr. Nerina Ramlakhan, explained: "Not sleeping enough forces our body into crisis or survival type mode. 

"We start to run on adrenaline which makes us conserve energy and store fat particularly around the middle - this is called ‘trunkal thickening’ -  and we start breaking down our muscles."

She added: "Not sleeping or poor quality sleep also makes you rely more on caffeine and refined sugars during the day and these are all substances that will make us put on weight. 

"In the meantime, people who have difficulty getting to sleep delay going to bed, and then snack as a procrastinating exercise. People also drink alcohol in the evenings, mistakenly believing it will make them more tired, and these alcoholic drinks are high in calories."

 

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This woman looks stressed, but being relaxed usually means you won't emotionally eat

Simple lifestyle changes to get better quality sleep can therefore help Brits to lose weight and stick to healthy eating regimes more easily. 

This news comes as it was revealed a whopping 75 per cent of people in the UK are not getting a good night's sleep. 

We all know what it’s like to have a few restless nights - low concentration, moodiness and lack of energy – to name a few of the pit falls, but imagine not sleeping at all.

A human needs sleep to promote healing, improve mood, reduce stress and improve memory and not enough sleep can lead to conditions such as diabetes, depression, heart disease and obesity.

Dr Nerina's top sleep tips to see results on the scales:

• Your bedroom is your personal sanctuary. Never bring your work life into the bedroom - keep laptops and mobile phones out of this room. It should be a technology free zone
• If you can, try and switch off from work as soon as you leave the office and avoid checking your emails or social media accounts 90 minutes before going to bed - put your phone, laptop and tablets away
• Regular exercise is one of the most effective ways of reducing stress hormone levels (mainly adrenaline) thus enabling you to sleep more deeply
• To sleep well we almost need to let go of wanting to sleep well. In other words, the more pressure we put on ourselves to sleep, the less likely we are to actually fall asleep. In these situations it might be helpful not to use the word 'sleep' but replace it with the word ‘rest'
• If you're lying in bed and you can't sleep - cast your mind over your day and think about all of the positives things that have happened. Close your eyes, breathe deeply and you will be asleep before you know it
• To help us sleep as well as possible we need a good balance of the hormones serotonin and melatonin in our system. Eating foods such as chicken, cheese, tofu, tuna, eggs, nuts, seeds and milk will help to boost these hormone levels. A glass of milk before bed is a great way to induce sleep