Here's Exactly How To Outsmart Those Junk Food Cravings When You're Tired

You've been up late every night this week because you've got a big deadline at work. Maybe you stayed out late with friends, dancing or enjoying a few cocktails when you knew you had an early morning. We've all done it. We push through with a little less sleep with little regard for how it might affect our health—or our food choices.

Have you ever noticed that a short stint of sleep (less than a full seven to eight hours) caused you to crave unhealthy, calorie-dense foods the next day? Maybe you had to stop off for a sugary latte or high-carbohydrate breakfast food to help you make it through the morning. Or maybe you're hitting that midday slump and need a high-calorie snack or sweet treat to make it through the afternoon.

Studies are showing that you're not alone.

An article published in the International Journal of Obesity1 looked at two groups of people who over the course of five nights slept for four hours versus nine hours. Those in the group who slept only four hours showed increased activity in the pleasure centers of their brain when shown unhealthy foods like pepperoni pizza, doughnuts, and candy. This means that sacrificing your sleep could lead to poor food choices the next day.

What's worse? If you continue skimping on you zzz's you could continue the vicious cycle leading to weight gain. Another study showed that the fewer the hours of sleep, the greater number of cravings for high-calorie, unhealthy foods. The more sleep-deprived you are, the more weight you may gain.