Make Sure to Get Your Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz’s

According to the National Sleep Foundation, An estimated 63% of American adults do not get the recommended 8 to 9 hours of sleep a night. They report that the average adult gets 6.9 hours of sleep on weeknights and 7.5 hours on weekends, for a daily average of 7 hours.

Not enough sleep can hurt your health:

"Recent research indicates that chronic under-sleeping does more than undermine productivity or make people more irritable. It also increases the risk of accidents and may contribute to serious, long-term problems such as obesity, diabetes and heart disease."- Atlanta Journal Constitution, July 6, 2003

A national study published tracking 71,617 nurses found that women who got five hours of sleep or less nightly over a decade had a 39 percent greater risk of heart attack than those who managed eight hours. Scientists at the University of Chicago also found that building up a sleep "debt" over a matter of days can impair metabolism and disrupt hormone levels. After restricting 11 healthy young adults to four hours of sleep for six nights, researchers found their ability to process glucose (sugar) in the blood had declined, in some cases to the level of diabetics.

One study published this year found that after two weeks of four-hour sleep, a group of healthy young adults performed as poorly on tests of alertness, memory and mental agility as those who had gone without any sleep for two nights. And they didn't seem aware of their gradually deteriorating performance.

Not enough sleep can cause weight gain:

Dr. Carl E. Hunt, director of the National Center on Sleep Disorders Research in Washington notes, "Basically healthy adults who are acutely sleep-restricted tend to eat more, and what they eat more of tends to be carbohydrates and high in fat."
An article on the www.FitCommerce.com website notes that sleep deprivation increases levels of a hunger hormone and decreases levels of a hormone that can make you feel full. These 2 factors lead to cravings for sweets, chips, and starchy fare like bread and pasta thus setting up the scenario for weight gain.

The article notes that this scenario sets up a downward cycle. Not having enough sleep leads to weight gain, then weight gain and obesity leads to sleep difficulties that can affect the quality of sleep and therefore cause even more sleep loss and therefore more weight gain.

Side, Back, or Stomach, which is best?

Side or back sleeping are both good. Back sleeping is the best for most people. When sleeping on your back it is best to have a very thin pillow or one with a curve/contour in it (to support the curve in your neck). Side sleeping is also fine for most people, you might want to avoid this if you have shoulder problems. When side sleeping you want a nice thick pillow, the thickness from the side of your neck to the tip of your shoulder (that way your head stays lined up with the rest of your body. Stomach sleeping is bad because you have to have your neck turned (to breathe) for hours at a time. If you have looked to 1 side for a while you know what that feels like.