Being mindful of what you eat before bedtime can help you get a good night’s sleep. The quality of your sleep is greatly affected by what you eat and at what time you eat it. Pooja Banga, Certified Nutritionist and wellness consultant, Founder – Cultivating Health, shares a list of food items which should be avoided before bedtime:
Cruciferous vegetables
Cruciferous vegetables are broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage. They all are very good for health in general but they are probably not the best thing to load up before you head to bed. These veggies can interfere with your ability to sleep soundly because you’re likely still digesting all that fiber while trying to fall asleep, which leads to being less than comfortable.
Eat those good for you veggies earlier in the day, so your body has time to digest them before you lay down for the night. It has insoluble fibers which can not let your digestive system stay at peace during the night
Ice creams and high sugar
Eating a bowl of ice cream before bed may hit the spot, but it won’t make for a good night’s sleep. Like fatty cheese, ice cream can take a while to digest and your body really isn’t able to rest well while you’re still working on digesting.
Sugar can also cause your energy to spike, keeping you from easily falling asleep. That sugar and fat make ice cream a sleep disruptor, rather than a supporter.
Candy bars, ice creams, cakes, etc, are all a big no when it comes to eating before bed. Yes, it may sound very comforting to have these after dinner but because of the high sugar content, the calories from them cannot be used immediately so it can get stored as fat.
Citric fruits and tomatoes
Tomatoes are good for your skin; it is sad that eating tomatoes at night can have a negative impact on your sleep. This is mainly because of tyramine, which is a type of amino acid. This chemical increases the activity of your brain and delays sleep.
No one ever said that citrus fruit can ever be unhealthy but due to the high vitamin C content, it is not ideal as bedtime food as it may cause acidity and heartburn if not digested properly. It will not only disturb your sleep cycle but also spoil the next day with all the burning sensations.
Alcohol
While you might think you’re getting drowsy after that glass of wine, drinking alcohol right before bed can affect quality of sleep. Alcohol might be soothing before bed, but is actually very disruptive for your sleep cycle and causes negative effects on rapid eye movement. You may fall asleep faster after a glass of wine, but you’re probably gonna wake up tomorrow still feeling pretty tired.
Red meat, cured meat and cheese
Cheese might be the worst offender of all the high-fat foods you could eat before attempting to go to sleep.
Red meat contains high protein and cured meat and cheeses have amino acid tyramine which makes you alert.
Caffeinated drinks and chocolate
We all know why high caffeine drinks should be avoided before bed as it can lead to sleeplessness but the same goes for chocolate.
Chocolate also has caffeine in it and is a sneaky one before bedtime because along with caffeine it also has an amino acid that makes you alert. Chocolate can be a good energy booster in the afternoon but it is not a good energy booster at night.