Attila Brisco | When you don’t sleep enough, your cortical levels rise. Can you say stress hormone?? Yikes, raised Cortisol levels means something is not lining up in your body… and as Elsa sings, “you’ve got to let it go.” Cortisol also activates reward centers in your brain that make you crave sugary foods or perhaps sandwiches. Getting between seven and nine hours’ of sleep nightly helps keep blood pressure and cholesterol levels under control and can help combat Cortisol levels as well.