Home Sweet Home

Mommies, especially the new ones, lack sleep all the time. Apart from taking care of the baby, they also need to juggle their responsibilities at home and at work. But moms, you should try to bump up "sleep" on your to-do list because aside from the fact that you will feel better, you will also enjoy these incentives:

1. YOU'LL BE SLIMMER

Previous studies have linked a lack of sleep with obesity, but exactly why was a mystery - until now: Not getting enough shut-eye significantly lowers nighttime levels of grehlin, a hormone involved in appetite control, say UCLA researchers. Grehlin levels may rebound, and then some, during the day - making you even more hungry.

2. YOU'LL BE NEARLY SNIFFLE-FREE

Routinely logging fewer then seven hours a night makes people almost three times more likely to catch a cold that those who get eight hours, according to a new Carnegie Mellon University study. Restless sleepers have it worse: They're nearly six times more prone to coming down with a cold.

3. YOU'LL BE SMARTER

When you're short on pillow time, proteins build up in your brain, giving you that thick, fuzzy-headed feeling the next morning, say researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine. These proteins also interfere with how the brain processes information and affect your ability to learn the next day.

4. YOU'LL BE HEART-HEALTHIER

If you spend fewer hours in bed that you ought to - and toss and turn once you're under the covers - you could be at risk of high blood pressure, reports a new study from Penn State College of Medicine. Insomnia paired with short sleep duration increased cortisol levels and upped heart rates, both of which can lead to cardiovascular problems.