How to Eat for a Better Sleep and Sleep for Better Eating
One of the best health remedies you can use for your body is ensuring you get quality sleep. Not only will you feel more energetic with a bounce in your step, but there are many other benefits for sleep.
Whether it is to consolidate memories, improve mental clarity and focus, or form new neurobiological pathways in the brain it is clear that sleep improves brain function. In terms of physical health, sleep supports cellular repair, a boosted immune system, and hormone balance. This hormone regulation process is integral to managing diet and weight. While we sleep our bodies are organising and establishing the appropriate amounts of appetite monitoring hormones for the following day. When you don’t get adequate sleep, Ghrelin (hormone that triggers hunger) rises and Leptin (hormone that triggers fullness / satiety) falls. If you are wondering why you have an insatiable appetite, check in on how much sleep you are getting and if this sleep is truly restful and uninterrupted.
Nutrition Strategies
- Foods high in Tryptophan to promote sleep. (Fish, cottage cheese, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, milk)
- Foods high in glutamine to support GABA production for increased relaxation. (Meat, cottage cheese, ricotta cheese, rolled oats)
- B vitamins support GABA production and synthesise serotonin, which regulates sleep. (Legumes, white fish, mushroom, sesame and sunflower seeds, spinach, asparagus. Kale, lentils, millet, avocados, tuna, chicken)
- Magnesium to relax muscle and nervous tension. (Wholegrains, raw cocoa, green leafy vegetables, almonds, cashews, legumes, buckwheat, avocado, mushrooms, corn, blackberries, grapes, muesli)
- Omega 3s will help stabilise sleep patterns. (Fish, oysters, flaxseed, chia seed oils, walnuts)
Other Sleep Tips
Plan to eat dinner 3 hours prior to bedtime to allow for digestive processes to take place during waking hours. However a light, night time snack or herbal tea before bedtime can prevent nocturnal dips in blood sugar that can wake you in the night.
Choose protein rich snacks, whole grain carbohydrates and essential fatty acids over high sugar containing foods during the day and night.
Avoid skipping meals to keep blood sugar levels balanced, and stabilise mood and energy and set a good rhythm for sleep at night.
Seek professional advice on supplements and medications as the timing of dosage of some tablets can have an effect on sleep.
Use your room for sleep and intimacy only, not work!
Allocate a time in your day to solve those problems or plan the following day, so you don’t feel you have to do this at night.
- And of course, avoid stimulants such as sugar, caffeine, coke, nicotine, even green tea at least 6 hours before bed time.
Melatonin
Melatonin is a hormone responsible for regulating our body clock, and sleep / wake cycle. Melatonin can be trained with some easy measures. Exercise to increase body temperature at least 4 hours prior to bedtime. And control your lighting. You will need to start the day with exposure to natural sunlight, and continue as often as possible with plenty of fresh air. Of an evening, limit the amount of light exposure from lighting and computers especially an hour before bedtime. If you do find you aren’t falling asleep or wake in the night, try to avoid turning on any lights, stay relaxed and use meditation.
Happy sleeping :)
