Is It Possible To Have Better Sleep By Making Changes In your Diet?

Ad collaborative post // Both diet and sleep are essential elements for a healthy life. But little did we consider if our diet can affect our sleep? We need to learn about the interrelation of various elements and their influence on the working of our bodies. We all know about the significance of diet on overall health, and most of us emphasize eating healthy food. But sometimes we fail to realize that diet has a significant impact on our sleep also.

For example, melatonin is a hormone that is produced naturally by our body. It regulates sleep patterns. Foods like Goji berries, tart cherries, eggs, milk, etc., are sources of melatonin. You can also use melatonin supplements like Life Extension, Nature’s Bounty, Megafood Melatonin Gummies, or Melatonin Gummies by Gummies Garden.

In this article, we will discover if it is possible to have a better sleep by bringing out some changes in diet:

What Is Diet?

In simple words, diet is what a person habitually eats. If we consider the definition in nutrition science, diet is more than eating habitually. National Institute of Health states diet constitutes various foods that provide nutrition in organic compounds, vitamins, and minerals. If you do not consume a proper diet, you are prone to develop nutritional deficiencies leading to many diseases.

These miraculous organic compounds, vitamins, and minerals play an essential role in cellular processes that impact our bodies’ functioning, including sleep.

Does Our Diet Influence Sleep?

Diet has profound effects on each aspect of our body, including sleep. Scientists suggest that diet affects the quality and quantity of sleep. Growing research is making it more precise day after day that the relation of the diet with sleep is highly complex and interconnects other body systems.

Researchers have found that lack of critical nutrients is associated with sleep problems. Vitamins are important to sleep regulation. Moreover, poor diet imbalances neurotransmitters release that control brain activity.

Unhealthy diet consumption can cause diseases that affect sleep quality. Sleep can also be influenced due to the presence of certain diseases such as obstructive airway diseases.

Science needs to discover more evidence to learn about the cause and effects of diet on sleep.

Diet That Can Negatively Affect Sleep:

• Caffeine

Caffeine is a naturally occurring central nervous stimulant present in coffee, tea, soft drinks, and chocolates. The chemicals in caffeine compete for adenosine and alert our brain; thus, it affects our sleep.

• Alcohol Consumption

Initially, alcohol has calming effects on the body, but it may lead to insomnia once your body is habitual to alcohol consumption. It is directly linked to poor quality and quantity of sleep. Moreover, alcohol consumption leads to diseases that cause secondary sleep loss.

• Carbohydrate Rich Foods

Carbohydrates are a rich source of energy for our bodies. Our bodies become alert and responsive when the energy level is high. A study suggests that people who intake a high amount of processed carbohydrate diet experienced more insomnia than people who consume fruits, vegetables, and whole-grain carbohydrates.

• Sweets

Sweet food has glucose. Glucose negatively impacts the sleep cycle of our body. It is recommended not to consume sweets and chocolates at night to increase circulating glucose in the blood. Similarly, people with type 2 diabetes experience poor sleep quality.

• Oily and Spicy Food

Oily food takes more time to digest, and if ingested before sleep, it can cause indigestion and bloating, leading to disturbed sleep. Similarly, spicy food can impair sleep. Research discloses that consumption of oily and spicy food raises body temperature that disturbs the sleep pattern.

Diet That Can Positively Affect Sleep:

• Role of Hormones

Hormones are regulators of our bodies. Sex hormones, insulin, cortisol, and melatonin, are essential hormones that impact sleep. Doctors recommend consuming supplements that enhance the production of hormones to regulate sleep patterns. Commercially available melatonin supplements are readily available in the market and are effective for the purpose.

• Vitamin and Mineral Rich Food

The deficiency of vitamins A, C, D, E, and K and minerals like calcium, magnesium, and potassium are associated with sleep problems. You should improve your dietary habits and use supplements to meet the average daily intake of these micronutrients.

• Milk

Warm milk before sleep is often suggested for good night sleep, but scientifically there is no evidence for this association. Nutritionist debate that milk has proteins and essential nutrients that bring relaxation, and drinking warm milk can bring more physiologic effects than drinking cold milk.

• Raw Honey

Honey encourages the release of the hormone melatonin and provides tryptophan, an amino acid, to the body. It is a natural supplement to help sleep faster and more profound. A teaspoon full of honey with warm milk is the best natural remedy for a good night’s sleep.

• Protein Rich Food

Protein is made up of amino acids that are the main constituents of our body. Twenty essential amino acids perform different functions. They all encourage sleepiness. Tryptophan is one of the 20 amino acids that regulate mood, fight anxiety and induce sleep.