Many people don’t know that diet and sleep have a deep connection. What you eat helps you sleep better at night. Furthermore, the better sleep you get the more you are inclined to eat.
Sleep is one of the most important needs in the day to day life of human beings. It is very essential for us that we get an adequate amount of sleep daily so we can work properly. Having a proper diet is one of the ways we can ensure good quality sleep.
If you want a healthy lifestyle then sleep is one of the three most essential elements. The other two are your diet and how much exercise you do. If you can have good quality sleep, then it would make your life so much better.
How Diet Affects Sleep and what are the other factors?
There are two major things to consider when it comes to our diet which also affects our sleeping pattern. They are of course what you eat and also when you eat them.
There are other factors like how much time you stay in the sun and how much exercise you do regularly. But, your diet is one of the most essential factors as well. How much time we spend looking at the screen also affects our sleep pattern.
What Problems Can Occur If You Don’t Sleep Properly?
There is a common misunderstanding among people that sleep is not essential for a healthy lifestyle. This kind of conception is borderline dangerous. Many life-threatening diseases can be a result of sleep deprivation. Diseases like heart attack, stroke, diabetes, faulty brain function, memory loss, and many others can be a result of not getting an adequate amount of sleep regularly.
Foods that disrupt sleep:
1) Caffeine: Tea and Coffee both contain caffeine. Caffeine blocks the essential chemicals in the body that helps induce sleep. Caffeine can be present in our bloodstream for six hours since we drink them.
Caffeine can also be present in chocolate. It is best if you don’t consume tea, coffee, or chocolate in the evening and night. It can be very difficult to get a decent sleep for some people if they drink a cup of coffee before going to bed.
2) Alcohol: Many would think that alcohol helps them to sleep. But, research shows something that is the opposite. Although, you would get sleepy initially after consuming alcohol. But it has been found that after some time alcohol would affect your sleep quality.
Remember how tired you feel after waking up from a night of drinking and partying. It is because of the alcohol in your system, you were sleep-deprived.
3) Spicy and fatty foods: Our body can digest food best in the morning and as the day progresses it becomes harder for our body to digest foods. It is not a good idea to eat spicy and fatty foods at night. They are not digested well in our body at that time and can result in poorer quality of sleep.
4) Acidic Foods: Acidic foods can be very hard to digest and they often cause sleeping quality to decline. Try to take them in moderate amounts in the evening and also in the afternoon.
5) Sugar: It is better to cut back on sugar for the benefit of your overall health. But, it has been found that not consuming sugar can help with making your sleep better too.
Sugar boosts the energy levels in our bodies quickly. But, the effect of it is not long and it goes away quickly which tires the body. If you can limit your sugar consumption throughout the day, you can get better quality of sleep at night.
Some Advice to Solve Diet and Sleep Problems
After doing some research on this matter, we have found some tips that can help you get good sleep by making some changes to your diet plan.
1. Eat less as the day advances
Our body loses its ability to digest food properly as the day progresses. To combat that, we have to limit our food consumption. Your breakfast should be the heaviest meal of the day and start limiting your food intake as the day progresses.
2. Eat carefully before you sleep
There are many foods that you absolutely should not touch before going to bed. They take longer to digest and can deprive you of sleep. On the other hand, going to bed with an empty stomach would also keep you awake at night. There are positive effects of diet on sleep quality if you eat foods that help you sleep well.
Some foods can improve the quality of your sleep. Banana and different types of berries are some of those fruits. They produce essential chemicals that our body needs for sleep. You can try eating those foods half an hour before bedtime if you are hungry to get a good sleep.
3. Stay hydrated throughout the day
You need to stay hydrated all day. Eat plenty of water and more if you exercise regularly. It has been found that snoring can be caused due to a lack of sufficient water in your mouth. It can hamper the quality of sleep too.
It is also not recommended to not drink plenty of water just before going to sleep. You should not drink any type of liquid before bed as it can disrupt your sleep.
4. Finding foods that help you to sleep
Some foods can help you improve your sleep. Some of them are walnuts, berries, bananas, and also some fatty fish. You can include them in your daily diet plan. They would help improve the quality of your sleep which would make your health better.
Now that you know how diet affects sleep, it is time for you to take action to change your life. Adjusting your food habits can play a major role in getting good quality sleep at night. A good sleep at night prepares you for a perfect day.
Related: How Diet Affects Skin? Things You Never Knew Before
