Bedtime Foods - Home Helpers

We all know that too much liquid, or anything containing caffeine, are no-nos in the hours before bedtime. But according to an article published on the AARP website, some other common foods also might be robbing you of a peaceful night’s sleep. To help ensure sweet dreams, and fewer nighttime trips to the bathroom, consider eliminating these foods from your evening menu.

1. Celery

Celery and other foods with a high water content, including cucumbers, watermelon and radishes, have the same effect on the body as a big glass of water at bedtime. They are natural diuretics that may cause you to wake in the middle of the night with a full bladder.

1. Tomatoes 

Blame it on the tyramine - an amino acid that triggers the brain to release norepinephrine, a stimulant that boosts brain activity and delays sleep. Other tyramine-rich foods include eggplant, soy sauce, red wine and aged cheeses, such as brie and Stilton.

1. Cheese pizza

Foods high in fat, including fried foods, take longer to digest and can cause discomfort that interferes with sleep. They can also reduce the effectiveness of some medications taken at night, says Alon Avidan, a neurologist and director of UCLA's David Geffen School of Medicine Sleep Disorders Center.

1. Alcohol

Although a nightcap or a glass of wine before bed may help you doze off quicker, it disrupts sleep later in the night and robs you of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. Lack of REM sleep harms concentration, memory and motor skills.

1. Black-bean chili

Beans are hard to digest, so stomach-rumbling gas pains could keep you from a good night's sleep if you enjoy this dish too close to bedtime, says Helen Rasmussen, a research nutritionist at Tufts University.

1. Dark chocolate

A small piece of dark chocolate each day helps keep your heart healthy — but don't nibble it right before you go to bed. Like coffee, tea and hot cocoa, dark chocolate contains caffeine.

1. Candy

A sweet treat before bed can cause your blood sugar levels to spike and then fall rapidly as the body releases insulin to bring them under control. You may fall asleep easily, but these fluctuations make it difficult to stay asleep.

1. Spicy foods

A taco liberally sprinkled with hot sauce may set your taste buds tingling, but eating it within a few hours of lights-out can set you up for a bad case of heartburn and a restless night. 

1. Steak

Foods high in protein and marbled fats, such as steak and roast beef, are slow to digest. If your body is busy digesting food, there's more of a chance that you'll have a restless night.

1. Broccoli

It is packed with nutrition, but this vegetable’s slow-to-digest fiber will keep your body working hard into the night. Broccoli and its relatives, including cauliflower and Brussels sprouts, also contain an indigestible sugar that will produce large amounts of gas, which can mean a noisy night for you and your roommate.

In general, avoid eating a heavy meal within three hours of bedtime. By waiting at least three hours after dinner to hit the hay, you give your body time to digest. With its work done for the day, a body with a relatively empty stomach can instead concentrate on getting a good, restful night’s sleep.

That doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy a snack before bed. Readers Digest published a list of 16 healthy choices that can actually help your body prepare for sleep, and help you get the shuteye you need. 

The list includes walnuts, cereal and cherry juice.

For the magazine’s complete list of sleep-inducing foods, and the science behind why they work, click here.

Source: AARP.org
Reader’s Digest

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