Along with a healthy diet, exercise and lifestyle choices, sleep is a very important piece of the wellness puzzle. What we eat can have both positive and negative effects on our sleep quality and quantity. And it is not just directly related to what we wat before bed, it is multifaceted; long term health eating patterns can set you up for great sleep and a healthy lifestyle.
Nutrition Tips to enhance sleep:
- Be sure to eat a healthy balanced daily diet for a healthy lifestyle
- Some lovely sleep promoters are foods rich in magnesium and tryptophan;
- Wholegrains, legumes and nuts are full of magnesium which is a natural muscle relaxant
- Lean proteins such as chicken, turkey + fish are high in the protein tryptophan which has been linked to an increase in serotonin levels thus aiding sleep
- Bananas and yoghurt can be a light small snack before bed that are also rich in tryptophan
Things to look out for:
- Of course, caffeine can be a hindrance to our sleep. It can affect people differently but for many, avoiding coffee after lunchtime can help with sleep onset
- Diets high in sugar can lead to hyperactivity and also a rise then subsequent drop in blood sugar levels, which can cause havoc with hormone and wake you during the night
- Eating too close to bed can interfere with your sleep. Allow a few hours after your last main meal for the food and its nutrients to digest before retreating to bed
- Spicy foods or foods that harder to digest (think high fat, heavy protein content) that are part of dinner can leave us feeling full or uncomfortable – it is worth considering watching these close to bedtime
- Alcohol; even moderate consumption can negatively affect sleep cycles, waking us later in the night
The flip side…
- If we have poor quality sleep and are not meeting the quality or quantity of sleep guidelines, our appetite regulating hormones leptin and ghrelin are affected, leading to over eating.