By the way . . . Sleep, stress and haywire hormones

MY chaotic workload has left me sleep deprived. These days, eight hours’ sleep would be like winning the lottery. Aside from my eyes falling out of my head, I have also noticed a distinct change in appetite. I’m normally a three-meals-a-day girl, with a strict ‘no snack’ rule.

These days I’m grazing and even succumbing to the midnight munchies. This has given me a wake-up call. It’s hitting me where it hurts: the waistline!

According to a recent publication by the Cleveland Clinic, it’s not my fault. It’s all down to the ‘four hormones of the apocalypse’. These hormones are being driven round the bend by my irregular hours. Meet ghrelin, the hormone regulating hunger. A spike in this will see you head straight for the fridge. Lack of sleep can make it skyrocket. Its sidekick, Peptide YY, tells us when we are full. Sleep deprivation lowers levels. Less Peptide YY sees me head straight for the carbs!

Because I’m busy, my food choices are less healthy. Cue the next hormonal crash, insulin. Insulin is used to break down glucose, but scoffing too much sugar or flour sees this hormone spike and then fall. The classic sugar crash... usually replaced by more sugar. And finally, there’s leptin, the satiety hormone. Eating too much flour, sugar and processed foods means this hormone may not be as adept at giving the signal to ‘step away from the table’. Worse still, over and above the apocalyptic four, the stress hormone cortisol peaks in busy periods. This not only increases the appetite, it also pushes up blood sugar and insulin levels, adding to the vicious circle.

So what do I do? The Cleveland Clinic advises to get back on the three meal a day rota and to never skip breakfast.

I need to have protein and a high quality fat with every meal and avoid all sugary drinks and ditch gluten or dairy if they aren’t agreeing with me. So far, all doable. The final piece of advice is to make sleep and stress-busting a priority. Hmmm. If I had the time to do that I wouldn’t be so wrecked in the first place. I need a plan B, other than bed!