Sleep deprivation = cravings

The last three days I have had less than half my usual amount of sleep (due to a large project with an absurd turnaround time). In addition to the usual side effects like mental fuzziness and bumping into things I have begun having strong cravings for foods I never eat anymore: think Ramen noodle soup, Chinese food, white flour. I know cravings are a sign my body needs something. It's possible I'm craving salt because I need extra minerals to deal with this stress. As for the carb cravings usually those signal protein deficiency. I skimped on eating a bit yesterday as I was just too busy so will need to catch up today... It's interesting to me to observe these cravings I haven't had in several months.