Foods that keep you up at night generally include stimulants like caffeine (chocolate, coffee, tea, soda) and substances that cause acid reflux (spicy, fatty, acidic foods like tomatoes, citrus), disrupt sleep cycles like alcohol, or cause blood sugar spikes/crashes (sugary snacks, refined carbs), plus heavy meals and some high-protein foods that are hard to digest, making it harder to fall asleep and stay asleep.
Nutrient-dense carbohydrates from whole fruit, vegetables, whole grain bread or crackers, air-popped popcorn are good choices. Protein and healthful fats from cheese, hummus, nut butters, plain Greek yogurt, nuts and seeds, guacamole, and hard-boiled eggs also are good choices.
Top Ten Foods to Avoid for a Good Night's Sleep
Good sources: turkey, chicken, fish, eggs, cheese, edamame, peanuts, tofu, quinoa and pumpkin seeds. Melatonin, a hormone your body makes to help with your sleep cycle. It can also be found naturally in some foods.
Fatty, cheesy, and fried foods can lead to indigestion and keep you up at night. Avoid things like cheeseburgers, fries, fried foods, and large steaks late in the day. These heavy foods can also aggravate gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).
The 2-2-2 food rule is a simple guideline for leftover safety: get cooked food into the fridge within 2 hours, eat it within 2 days, or freeze it for up to 2 months to prevent bacteria growth, keeping it out of the temperature "danger zone" (40-140°F or 5-60°C).
Certain foods can help you sleep. These include: Melatonin-rich foods: tart cherries like Montmorency cherries, unsweetened tart cherry juice, pistachios, almonds, eggs, and milk. Foods with tryptophan: turkey, chicken, fish, eggs, cheese, edamame and tofu, peanuts, quinoa, and pumpkin seeds.
Quick fixes to improve deep sleep:
The 3-2-1 sleep rule is a simple wind-down routine: stop eating and drinking alcohol 3 hours before bed, stop working/mentally stimulating activities 2 hours before, and turn off screens (phones, TVs) 1 hour before sleep, helping you transition to rest by reducing stimulants and preparing your mind and body. It's often part of a larger 10-3-2-1-0 rule, which also adds no caffeine 10 hours prior and no hitting snooze (0) in the morning.
Fruits for ZZZs
Cardiologists generally advise avoiding processed meats, sugary drinks and sweets, and foods high in trans fats and sodium, like most fried foods and salty snacks, because they raise bad cholesterol, blood pressure, and inflammation, significantly increasing heart disease risk. Focusing on whole foods and limiting these culprits is key for heart health.
The Best Bedtime Snacks to Help You Sleep
How to stay awake naturally
A peanut butter and jelly sandwich (PB&J) adds about 33 minutes to your healthy lifespan per serving, according to a University of Michigan study that measured life expectancy impacts of over 5,850 foods using the Health Nutritional Index (HNI). This sandwich tops the list for adding time, with nuts and seeds also being highly beneficial (around 25 mins) and processed items like hot dogs subtracting time.
Symptoms of hyperglycaemia include:
The koala is famous for sleeping around 20-22 hours a day, which is about 90% of the day, due to their low-energy diet of eucalyptus leaves that requires extensive digestion. Other extremely sleepy animals include the sloth (up to 20 hours) and the brown bat (around 20 hours), with some snakes like the ball python also sleeping up to 23 hours daily.
How to Improve Your Sleep Score
Symptoms
11 Foods to Help You Sleep: Snack Your Way to Better Sleep
The truth is, there's no scientific evidence that butter helps you sleep. In fact, some studies suggest that a diet high in saturated fat could actually disrupt your sleep. While a small amount of butter might curb hunger and prevent you from waking up, the sleep benefits are likely due to a placebo effect.
Once you have your first meal, depending on its content and balance, it's recommended to have each subsequent meal every three to four hours to prevent dips in blood sugar levels (which can lead to feeling hangry). Meals should include a protein-rich food, high-fiber starches, vegetables, fruits, and fat.
Bacteria can grow rapidly on food left out at room temperature for more than 2 hours. If food is left out in a room or outdoors where the temperature is 90 degrees F or hotter, food should be refrigerated or discarded within just 1 hour. Myth: When I microwave food, the microwaves kill the bacteria.