Good sleep is one of the little secrets sleep doctors have for weight loss," said Dr. Robert Springer a Waco sleep and lung specialist.

Springer is an expert when it comes to getting your rest. He says there's no doubt that if you're lacking in the deep sleep department, you'll have a hard time dropping unwanted pounds--no matter how much you exercise.

"One of the issues with weight is depth of sleep. If you don't get deep sleep you don't produce growth hormone which in an adult is closely linked to insulin resistance and to thyroid hormone and to your metabolism and that is where you get into the issue of gaining weight," he said.

Springer says it's not so much quantity of sleep but quality, uninterrupted sleep that needs to be attained. He says he's seen counseled overweight patients about to undergo gastric bypass surgery that have been able to correct their weight problem by correcting their sleeping patterns.

"Many overweight individuals have a lack of deep quality sleep and in some instances, we've been able to restore the depth of their sleep and when they come back, some have lost between 10 and 20 percent of their weight and perhaps not need surgery anymore,"

There are a number of ways Springer says, to attain deep sleep--many of which come with inducing your levels of melatonin before you lay down at night, which could include a bath or a warm glass of milk.

Watching TV or doing paperwork in bed is not the answer Springer says when it comes to preparing for deep sleep.

FOR MORE INFORMATION LOG ONTO www.sleepwaco.com