What You Eat Affects How You Sleep
Getting a good, as well as, uninterrupted sleep is considered to be among the best ways of staying healthy. Studies reveal that people who lack a good night rest, experience numerous issues in other aspects of their life, besides their health. So sound sleep is associated with a wide range of health benefits including quicker reflexes, clarity of thoughts as well as improved mood.
A sleep disorder can lead to some severe consequences such as lack of appetite, growth issues, weight gain as well as a weakened immune system. There are various reasons why you might not be getting a good night sleep.
Among the main reasons include eating inappropriate food, since what you eat before going to bed affects your sleeping pattern and might cause a sleep disorder.
What Types Of Foods To Avoid For Better Sleep?
1. Caffeine
Experts recommend that you cut your caffeine intake before bed, for sound sleep. You should also avoid drinking caffeine-containing beverages shortly before your bedtime. Caffeine is a central nervous stimulant that is commonly found in soft drinks, tea, energy drinks and chocolate as well.
2. Alcohol
Most people tend to believe that a glass or two of red wine before bedtime makes you sleepy and experience sound sleep. However, research has shown that alcohol can have a serious impact on your sleep. To avoid disturbance in sleep, ladies are advised only to take one drink each day, and two drinks for the men. Since alcohol is often metabolized quickly into your system, it can disturb your sleep, causing you to wake up several times in the middle of the night. Alcohol is also known to cause snoring problems, affecting you as well as your bed partner.
3. High-Fat Foods
Consuming high-fat meals before sleeping can result to restlessness especially in the early morning hours when you should be sound asleep. When you take high-fat foods, your body takes long to digest all the fat, keeping the body awake during the entire digestion process. Some of the high-fat foods to avoid before bedtime include ice cream, fried foods, snacks, junkies, and chips. High-fat content in the body can also lead to the production of excess acid in the stomach, leading to heartburn.
4. Heavy Spices
You should also avoid taking meals containing heavy spices such as Indian curry. A recent study demonstrated how those using mustard and Tabasco sauce on their dinner had problems falling asleep, compared to those who took blander suppers. Most spices are also known to lead to heartburn, which can lead to a disturbed sleep.
5. Chicken
According to experts, the digestion process should slow by up to 50% when asleep. Heavy meals including meat or chicken that are rich in proteins and can take longer to digest when taken in high quantities before bed. Your sleep is interrupted as your system focuses on the digestion process, rather than sleeping and resting.
6. Dark Chocolate
This type of chocolate is known to have high contents of calories as well as caffeine, some of the foods to avoid for better sleep. Dark chocolate also contains other stimulants such as theobromine which increases the heart rate, leading to sleeplessness.