What You Eat Affects How You Sleep

Getting sufficient sleep always makes your day much better. You are more well-rested, you have more energy, your mind is sharper. If you are one of the many people who suffer from insomnia, you understand how tough your day can be after a night of bad sleep.

However, sleep is also vital for maintaining good health. Those who suffer from chronic insomnia have an elevated risk of obesity, heart disease, and diabetes.

Many who don't get an adequate amount of sleep at night often use caffeine to help keep them awake throughout the day. Caffeine is probably the most popular stimulant there is - found in coffee, tea, chocolate, sodas, and energy drinks. However, taking in too much caffeine can result in feeling jittery, and if consumed late in the day or evening, caffeine can make it quite difficult to fall asleep.

Reducing caffeine intake can be difficult. Many actually have caffeine withdrawal symptoms including headaches, tiredness, irritability and lack of focus. These can generally be avoided by gradually reducing your intake.

This is just one example of how your diet can directly affect your ability to get a good night's sleep. Here are a number of other diet tips that might help you sleep better:

1) Try to limit how many heavy or spicy foods you eat. Also limit your intake of any foods that cause you to have heartburn, which can make falling asleep extremely difficult.

2) Have a light snack before going to sleep. Eat something that includes both carbohydrates and dairy, such as a bowl of cereal with low-fat milk. Carbohydrates can help make it easier to fall sleep, and dairy contains tryptophan, which can help promote feelings of drowsiness. Some other foods that have tryptophan include turkey, oats, bananas, and honey.

3) Do not eat an excessive amount of fat. Those who consume excessive quantities of fat often have difficulty in falling asleep. Ensure that you are getting adquate omega-3 fatty acids every day, however, since eicosapentaenoic acid (a type of omega-3) plays an important part in inducing sleep.

4) Eat some cherries. They are not only full of vitamins, but also contain melatonin, another compound that is vital in regulating sleep. Eating some cherries before bed time could help you fall asleep more easily.

5) People who are over-tired have a tendency to overeat, particularly through including sugary and carbohydrate-filled snacks to their diet. These excessive amounts of extra calories often lead to obesity. This shows that not only does your diet affect how well you sleep, but the amount and quality of your sleep can also affect what food you eat.

6) Avoid drinking excessive amounts of alcohol. Even though drinking alcohol may initially result in feelings of drowsiness, excessive drinking often results in a restless, uncomfortable night.