Do you have trouble falling asleep? What you eat can affect many things, even your ability to sleep.
1. A heavy meal just before bedtime can interfere with sleep. Even if you sometimes feel tired and exhausted after an extended feast, eating too much before bedtime is not a promising strategy for a good night’s sleep. An excessively large meal stimulates the blood flow to the digestive organs, which can make you wide awake! So in the evening it’s best to enjoy a small, light meal.
2. It is also not a good idea to skip lunch. On the one hand, this often leads to eating too much in the evening. On the other hand, fasting causes hormonal changes that interfere with sleep.
3. Start the day with a good, healthy and nutritious breakfast to ensure a consistent supply of the nutrients needed to build hormones and neurotransmitters and fill up the resources your body used up overnight.
4. Hormones and neurotransmitters such as serotonin and melatonin that regulate the sleep-wake rhythm are built from proteins. This is why it’s important to consume enough protein in the morning, from an egg for example.
5. If you are under a lot of stress, your body might need more magnesium. Foods rich in magnesium for example are millet, sunflower seeds, as well as chocolate or almonds.
6. Herbs can help with many problems in human existence, even with sleep. Herbal teas with lemon balm, passion flower or chamomile can help induce sleep and they taste excellently, a savory reward after a busy day. Ginseng and fennel are also considered helpful for good deep sleep. Young children, however, should only consume fennel in moderation.
7. Several studies have found that carbohydrates in the evening help us sleep better. But instead of biscuits, cake or ice cream it’s healthier to consume these carbohydrates in the form of grain side dishes such as rice or millet or whole grain bread.