Foods that help you sleep

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Foods affect your sleep. To get a restful sleep is to get your brain calmed. Foods contribute to restful sleep called sleepers while foods keep you awake called wakers. Sleepers are contained with acid amino named tryptophan that helps body to build serotonin, which slows down nerve traffic so your brain relaxed. Wakers are contained with chemicals that perk up the brain activity.


You can get restful sleep of this biochemical trait by choosing meals to calm down your brain. For teenagers and adults, medium carbohydrate and high protein meals are best consumed for breakfast and lunch. A high complex carbohydrates meal or snack contains just enough tryptophan is good for dinner or bedtime. The best bedtime snack has complex carbohydrates, protein, and some calcium. Calcium activates the use of the tryptophan. That’s why dairy products are the top sleep-inducing foods. Try to avoid high carbohydrate snack which high in junk sugars because you may set off the effect of plummeting blood sugar and the discharge of stress hormones that will keep your eyes awake.


Here are some of high in the sleep-inducing amino acid foods:

1) Dairy products: Milk, yogurt, cheese
2) Soy products: Soybean nuts, soy milk, tofu,
3) Seafood: Shrimp, cuttlefish, crab
4) Meats: Beef, mutton
5) Poultry and eggs: Chicken, duck
6) Whole grains: Cereal, bread
7) Beans: Lentils, broad beans
8) Nuts: Hazelnuts, peanuts


Light meals are expected to provide you a restful sleep. Large servings and high fat meals make longer digestive process and it may keep you awake. Although you may fall asleep faster, all the process to digest a big meal is probably to cause a poor quality of sleep and frequent waking. Some people discover that high seasoned and spicy foods such as garlic and hot peppers interfere with sleep. For most people, having a full stomach before going to bed does not promote a restful sleep. Therefore take your evening meal early.


Foods that are high in carbohydrates and medium in protein will help you to calm down in the evening and also provide a good sleep. Here are some suggestion meals for sleep:

1) Pasta with cheese
2) Pasta seafood with cheese
3) Scrambled eggs with cheese
3) Fried tofu
4) Whole grain pita with hummus
5) Meats or poultry with veggies
6) Tuna sandwich with salad


Snacks that have complex carbohydrates, protein, and some calcium make ideal sleep-inducing bedtime. It takes about an hour for the amino acid in the foods transfer to the brain, so have your snack at least an hour before bedtime. Here are some ideal snacks examples:

1) Cereal with milk
2) Ice cream and apple pie
3) Tofu and nuts
4) Raisin and oatmeal cookies, best with a glass of milk


Avoid foods that keep you awake such as caffeine-containing foods. Know your caffeine proportion and time it boost. Many people can take up to 3 cups of coffee or a large bottle of cola in a day but no sleeping problems. Usually the effect of caffeine is within six hours, so take coffee in the morning or cola in the afternoon will not interfere with night’s sleep.

Now you know foods that help you sleep. Have a good night’s sleep!