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Seven late-night foods for better sleep
Some foods will not only satisfy your hunger but also help you sleep better.
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We all have those nights once in a while when our body refuses to fall asleep and triggers a late-night craving instead. (Shutterstock/New Africa)
We all have those nights once in a while when our body refuses to fall asleep and triggers a late-night craving instead.
According to Reader's Digest, these foods will not only satisfy your hunger but also help you sleep better:
1. Almonds
According to a study published in the Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine, a lack of magnesium in your body could wake you up. Almonds are not only rich in magnesium, which is needed for quality sleep, but also have a low glycemic index value -- meaning you'll feel full longer.
2. Lettuce
Apart from being good for your digestion, lettuce is also beneficial if you aim for an earlier bedtime. The lactucarium in lettuce has a sedative effect that is similar to opium.
3. Pretzels
Know that sleepy feeling after lunch? Eating pretzels delivers the same effect, as the snack triggers a spike in your blood sugar and insulin levels, which in turn helps sleep-promoting amino acid tryptophan enter your brain.
4. Rice
Not only does rice fill you up, but white rice in particular also has a high glycemic index value, which will induce sleep. According to a study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, jasmine rice helps you sleep faster than other types of rice.
[RA::Why do we feel sleepy after eating a meal?::/life/2016/10/04/why-
do-we-feel-sleepy-after-eating-a-meal.html]
5. Cereal
While cereal and milk are a classic breakfast choice, eating the combination at night might help you sleep better, according to the National Sleep Foundation. Cereal is rich in carbohydrates, and the milk has calcium, both of which can help you sleep.
6. Chamomile tea
Tea is well-known for its calming effect. According to researchers, drinking chamomile tea might increase glycine, a muscle- and nerve-relaxing chemical that has a sedative effect.
7. Tuna
Tuna, along with halibut and salmon, is high in vitamin B6, which is needed by the body to make melatonin and serotonin -- two hormones that regulate sleep. So if you are thinking about grabbing tuna sushi for dinner, go ahead, your body will thank you for it. (dev/kes)
