People are always trying to find new ways to lose weight. They turn to fad diets, juice cleanses and weight loss programs. But what if you could lose 14 pounds a year just by doing a little bit more of something that you already do every day?

A study conducted in Sao Paulo found that simply by sleeping six hours per night, a person can avoid 14 pounds of extra weight each year.

Yes, you just read this correctly. Simply by bundling up on your comfortable bed, you can take a very positive step toward controlling your weight. But is this really a problem?

Most people love sleep. Our bodies crave it.

There shouldn't be too many people who are not getting the sleep they need, right?

Wrong.

One-third of working adults in the U.S. are sleeping fewer than six hours per night, according to The Center for Disease Control. While the amount of sleep one needs varies, the standard for an adult is typically between seven and eight hours of sleep per night. If sleep is so great, why are we not getting eight hours every night?

The Sleep Health Foundation in Australia found that there are many reasons why people don't get enough sleep. The reasons include too much caffeine or alcohol consumption, stress, shift work and eating or drinking late at night.

However, the number one reason listed is that people do not realize how important sleep is.

"They may think of it as a waste of time," the Sleep Health Foundation wrote. "Time spent in bed asleep is time well spent. There are many very important things that the brain needs to do while asleep."

So why is sleep so important to our health, specifically our weight?

As the infographic below explains, there are three reasons your weight is connected to your sleep.

Hormones

Dr. Michael J. Breus explains that sleeping six hours or less disrupts vital hormone levels. It has been found that even a single night of sleep deprivation can elevate Ghrelin levels that spur your appetite, specifically for high-calorie foods, and reduces your Leptin levels which suppress your appetite and causes hunger pains.

The sleep-brain-appetite relationship

A 2013 study conducted at UC Berkeley found that a sleepless night can make you crave junk food more than healthy foods.

"High-calorie foods...became significantly more desirable when participants were sleep-deprived," Matthew Walker, a UC Berkeley professor of psychology and neuroscience said. "This combination of altered brain activity and decision-making may help explain why people who sleep less also tend to be overweight or obese."

It was also discovered that even one night of sleep deprivation can make fattening, high-calorie foods more attractive and negatively influence your brain's ability to make rational decisions.

Who knew that not getting enough sleep led you to eat that doughnut you didn't even really want at work this morning?

Calories

In order for your body to burn the maximum amount of calories, the body should be in the REM sleep stage. The amount of REM sleep your body receives increases the longer you sleep. You don't want to miss out on the effortless calories burned just by sleeping a little bit longer.

Sometimes all it takes is giving your body a reason to look forward to bedtime. One of the most frequently overlooked areas to getting a good night's sleep is your sleep surface. Chances are you are sleeping on a foam mattress, and foam can sag up to 25% in the first two years. A sagging mattress is one of the leading causes of back pain and not to mention all the tossing and turning associated with that, disrupting your restorative deep sleep cycles.

Intellibed offers mattresses that use Intelli-gel, the most advanced technology engineered for better sleep. Sleeping on an Intelli-gel surface reduces pressure points by up to 80% and they are also recommended by over 1,000 chiropractors. Now that you know it can also help you maintain a healthy weight, you have even more of a reason to invest in a healthy night's rest.

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