Nutrition and sleep: what to eat to sleep better?

Francesco Palma

March 17, 2023

Today, March 17, It’s World Sleep Daywhich aims to raise public awareness on the importance of sleep at night and how this affects everyone’s physical and mental health. After all, sleeping well is not always easy: the rhythms of the days are increasingly crazy, the hours spent on the PC and on the telephone are wasted and the situation worsens and the episodes of chronic insomnia are more and more frequent.

the nutritionist

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There are many reasons that lead to all this, but there are also many things that can be done to improve the situation: one of these is certainly taking care of nutrition, as explained by Doctor Martina Donegani, Nutritionist biologist and scientific ambassador of Gazzetta Active: “There is a strong link between healthy eating and quality sleep. After all, we must always remember that the body uses rest to replenish energy stocks, and through anabolic activity it repairs and rebuilds the tissues stressed by the activity carried out during the day. To ensure that these activities are functional and that the body has the right energy to carry them out, it is important that there is a quality diet in support”.

nutrition and sleep: advice

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To ensure that nutrition helps our night sleep, Dr. Donegani proposes some important guidelines: “First of all, hydration is essential, because during the night our body undergoes transpiring processes which lead to a loss of water. If you go to sleep without having taken the right amount of water, the thirst center will send signals that will disturb sleep. As for food: it’s important to eat breakfast well in the morning, because it’s the meal that then influences our whole diet for the day. DinnerInstead, on the one hand it must be light, but on the other it must provide sufficient energy that is enough until the next morning. There is no right time to have dinner, but it should be done at least 2-3 hours before going to bed”.

what to eat to sleep better

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The doctor then explains which are the most suitable foods for better sleep: “It is good to choose foods rich in tryptophan, a precursor amino acid of serotonin (the so-called “happiness hormone”) and melatonin, involved in the sleep/wake mechanism. The foods that contain the most are eggs and cheesesas well as i sea ​​fish and turkey, chicken, rabbit, veal and lamb meats. Also recommended are dried legumes, walnuts, hazelnuts and some vegetables such as potatoes, spinach, cauliflower, lettuce, chard and asparagus. Furthermore, it is good to guarantee our body a regular supply of vitamin B1 and B6, which in turn contribute to the hormone synthesis of serotonin”. Finally, a note on chamomile, considered one of the classic remedies against insomnia: “It is not miraculous, but thanks to its magnesium content it has a calming effect that can induce rest. However, we must remember that in some people it can produce the opposite effect, hindering sleep”.

The “Three Hour Rule”

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The keywords of this process are regularity and common senseunderstood as the ability to regulate oneself during the day, as the doctor explains: “The so-called three-hour rule should be followed: do not let more than three hours, maximum three and a half hours, go by without taking a little food during the day. Certainly if we need to rest more, the diet must adjust to this need, with smaller portions and light food”.

Things not to do

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Listed the main guidelines to follow to sleep better by eating well, it is also important to remember the things not to do to have quality sleep: “First of all, cooking in fat should be avoided in the evening meal”explains the doctor. Then also pay attention to sugars: “According to recent studies, consuming too many simple sugars in the evening hours makes you more restless at night, with a deterioration in the quality of sleep. This happens because there is a increased insulin releasewhich allows the sugar to give energy to the cells: consequently, if this happens before the evening there will be a greater predisposition to activity, and not to sleep”.

Caffeine and alcohol

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Clearly, no caffeine in the evening: “Its disposal can last even more than three hours, consequently taking it in the evening hinders sleep. It is found in coffee, tea, chocolate and many sodas. Also beware of alcohol: even if it induces drowsiness it does not lead to quality sleep, we often wake up at night and find it hard to fall back asleep”. Finally, “extreme” remedies such as the so-called Keto Diets (which exclude cereals and carbohydrates) and evening fasts should be avoided: “The cereals and the breadexcluded from ketogenic regimens, they are important for sleep thanks to their richness in starch, which favors the availability of tryptophan and therefore helps to rest better. Similarly, fasting and skipping dinner means going to bed hungry and increasing the frequency of night-time awakenings”.