10 Foods to Help You Sleep Better
Diet plays an enormous role in sleep. Certain foods can aid you in sleeping more soundly while others should be avoided.
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Include protein-rich foods such as black, white and garbanzo beans; nuts; seeds and avocados in your daily diet for optimal sleepiness and wakefulness. Melatonin released by these food sources can also optimize your circadian rhythm for maximum restfulness and alertness.
1. Bananas
Bananas can be an excellent pre-bedtime snack, as they contain tryptophan and potassium that the body uses to convert into serotonin and melatonin, helping us sleep soundly and stay asleep throughout the night.
Sleep is essential to overall health and a functioning brain. According to one 2020 study, individuals who consume less magnesium, calcium, vitamin A, and vitamin D experienced less restorative sleep.
Introduce bananas into your breakfast (try our Strawberry Banana Baked Oatmeal!) or bedtime smoothie to provide an additional sleep aid boost - or simply enjoy some slices before hitting the sheets!
2. Cottage Cheese
Cottage cheese can help promote a better night of restful slumber by providing essential protein-rich nourishment before bed. Furthermore, cottage cheese contains tryptophan that promotes serotonin production for increased sleep-inducing hormone levels in your body.
Cottage cheese is an excellent source of calcium, helping promote sleep by increasing production of melatonin--an endogenous chemical produced naturally by our bodies that regulates our sleeping-wake cycle.
TikToker Ryan Kassim recommends pairing 3/4 cup of low-fat cottage cheese with half cup of tart cherries as a tasty and sleep-inducing snack for 170 Calories, providing protein, carbohydrates that promote restful sleep, calcium, and more - perfect as an evening treat!
3. Herbs
Herbs offer an all-natural solution for improving sleep without resorting to prescription medication. Studies have demonstrated how herbs can reduce anxiety and promote relaxation for a more restful night's rest.
Chamomile is one of the best-known herbal remedies for insomnia. This soothing plant can be enjoyed as tea form. One 2015 study discovered that chamomile's soothing effects help improve sleep quality in women suffering from insomnia symptoms.
Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) can also help relieve insomnia by providing GABA support through its content of rosmarinic acid, encouraging relaxation.
4. Homemade Pasta Sauce
Spicy foods, like the kind found in spaghetti with meatballs or hot dogs, may disrupt sleep by triggering heartburn. Their acid content causes the lower esophageal sphincter to remain open longer, leading to discomfort for those prone to it.
Carbs can interfere with sleep, but what type of carbohydrates and proteins we eat makes a big difference. Rice has a low glycemic index rating and when combined with tryptophan-containing proteins can promote restful slumber.
Nuts can also help promote sleep, with pistachios being particularly effective as an excellent source of melatonin, B6 and magnesium.
5. Banana “Ice Cream”
As most of us are well aware, certain foods can impede sleep quality. A cup of coffee or chocolate could potentially create jitters that lead to an interrupted night's rest.
There are certain foods that can help facilitate easier sleeping at night and ensure more restful slumber, and as much as possible try to incorporate these items into your diet.
These snacks contain key nutrients to promote better nighttime rest. For instance, eating bananas paired with no-added-sugar nut butter provides the amino acid tryptophan, which stimulates serotonin production and leads to better restful nights of sleep.
6. Chamomile Tea
Chamomile tea's soothing floral flavor and aroma makes it easy to include into your bedtime ritual, plus it doesn't contain caffeine like other varieties such as black and green teas.
Chamomile may help improve sleep because it can reduce anxiety, thus decreasing time spent tossing and turning in bed. Furthermore, it acts as a natural antispasmodic that relaxes muscles to alleviate tension caused by menstrual cramps, anxiety or other stresses manifesting themselves within your body.
Chamomile can also be found in supplements made up of crushed flowers or extracts, or you could try Honeybush Hot Cider which features both chamomile and South African rooibos in one relaxing herbal blend.
7. Almonds
A handful of sleep-inducing nuts is an easy and delicious way to satisfy hunger while providing sleep-supportive ingredients like melatonin, protein, niacin, calcium magnesium and vitamin E - perfect as an after dinner snack like Maple Berry Granola!
Almonds contain unsaturated fats that help increase serotonin levels, helping regulate your sleep-wake cycles. Furthermore, magnesium found in almonds may prevent high blood pressure and muscle cramps.
Consume them together with low-glycemic foods like whole grain cereal or toast an hour or two before bed to shorten the time needed to fall asleep, according to research published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
8. Green Tea
Green tea contains both l-theanine and caffeine, both of which can help improve energy and focus. Furthermore, magnesium helps promote restful sleep. Unfortunately, green tea may keep some people awake; for those sensitive to its caffeine content who cannot drink enough green tea each day roasted or decaffeinated varieties may help.
Magnolia bark contains a polyphenol that may aid in aiding sleep for some individuals. While it has not been extensively tested, buyers of Magnolia Bark Tea report its success at helping them fall asleep faster.
9. Milk & Honey
Warm milk mixed with honey has proven effective for aiding sleep. Milk's proteins increase tryptophan levels while honey blocks orexin activity (a brain chemical which keeps you alert).
Oatmeal is another food to help promote sleep, providing carbohydrates which release melatonin, nature's hormone that induces restful slumber. Try adding one tablespoon of raw honey before bed for extra sleepy goodness!
Try eating chickpea-based hummus as it contains folate and vitamin B6 to promote healthy sleep patterns. In addition, hummus contains naturally occurring melatonin which may induce sleep when eaten at night.
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