If you ever needed a reason to get a few hours of extra sleep while your hubby cooks you breakfast and starts the chores, this is it! Researchers at Duke University have completed a study that proves that it’s essential to their psychological and physical health for women to get more sleep than men.

Taking data from 210 men and women aged between 18-65, the researchers measured quality and frequency of sleep, as well as overall health and found that the women who had trouble falling asleep often had a higher BMI, increased hostility, higher stress and risk of depression – all seriously scary issues! However, the men with poor sleep avoided all of these.

Researchers are suggesting that the difference is down to the levels of testosterone. Testosterone protects the body’s cells, including the brain and other organs and because men have this hormone in higher levels, they’re able to have less sleep without any consequence.

“Higher testosterone is associated with lower CRP and IL-6 [hormonal markers of inflammation in the blood stream], greater insulin sensitivity and lower BMI,” the researchers write in the journal Brain, Behavior and Immunity. “It is reasonable to assume, therefore, that higher testosterone levels blunt the health damaging consequences of poor sleep in men.”

Main image from Alicia and David’s Wedding. Photography by Bellé Photo