Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby were chatting to expert Professor Matthew Walker about the importance of getting a good night’s sleep on This Morning today.
He claimed that the country is in the midst of a “sleep loss epidemic” and it is the “greatest public health challenge” we currently face.
Promoting his new book, Why We Sleep, and discussing how to improve your sleep, Matthew evaluated the presenters’ sleeping patterns.
Phillip admitted that he is a “night owl” and enjoys staying up late.
He explained: “The first part of the week, I go to bed at 10 o’clock and sleep okay and then wake up at half past five.
“But when it gets to Thursday if I’m not working Friday then I’ll stay up really late and get up late.
“So I change to during the course of the week. I’m assuming that’s probably quite bad for you.”
“That’s not great,” Matthew replied. “It’s actually called social jet lag when people go to bed early and wake up early and then at weekends they binge on their sleep and purge during the week.
“It does have deleterious health consequences, higher risk of things like diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
“It’s the equivalent of flying to the middle of Europe and back every weekend. It’s torture for your biology.”
Phillip was left speechless by Matthew’s warning and could be seen holding his head in his hands.
As the sleep expert continued with the segment, the 55-year-old was seen covering his mouth with his hand in shock as he shot a worrying look at the camera.
Following an ad break after the sleep segment, Phillip confessed to Holly: “I’m now going to worry about that. I’m not going to be able to sleep.”
His co-host joked: “Well, if you’re not going to sleep, can you come and babysit my children?”
Meanwhile, today on This Morning, Holly showed off her slender legs in a pair of tight-fitting trousers from French Connection.
She joked that she resembled an avocado in her bright ensemble as she teamed her dark trousers with a lime green knit jumper.
This Morning airs weekdays on ITV at 10.30am.