Sleep deprivation 'can make you obese'

People who sleep less are more likely to be fat, it has been claimed.

Not getting enough sleep makes it more likely you will become obese, according to one sleep professional.

Dr Charles Samuels told the Vancouver Sun that sleep-deprived people are hungrier than their more well-rested peers and also have an increase in appetite for higher-calorie foods.

He is the medical director at the Calgary Centre for Sleep and Human Performance and his organisation has said that middle-aged people getting less than four hours sleep a night are 73 per cent more likely to be obese.

Dr Samuels added that sleep was as vital to health as diet and exercise.

"If we correct the sleep, we give the person the foundation upon which their weight-loss programme can work," he said.

According to Dr Melissa Conrad Stoppler, sleep deprivation is not only bad for your weight.

Speaking to Medicine Net, she said that people deprived of sleep perform as badly in driving and hand-eye co-ordinations tests as someone who is drunk.