Andrea K Wann
FCS SNAP-Ed Extension Agent
It is a strange thought that what we eat or don’t eat can affect our quality of sleep.
It is important for everyone to realize that quality of sleep can be altered depending on what we eat or drink for throughout the day.
For starters let’s be honest, most children, teens and adults probably are not getting the appropriate number of hours needed to grow, flourish and well, function properly.
We first need to realize that sleeping is not just shutting our eyes for 7-9 hours, when we sleep our bodies are repairing themselves and they are healing in ways we cannot see; this is vital to maintaining good physical, mental and emotional health. If you lie awake at night feeling exhausted, but strangely wired, you may want to look further into your daily eating and drinking habits and scope some things out.
For example, diets high in refined grains, added sugars and/or saturated-fat can disrupt the body’s natural sleep cycle, allowing for more awake time than sleep time. The good news is that there are foods that can promote better, more restful sleep for everyone. Foods such as cherries, yogurt, lean poultry, chia seeds, oatmeal, hummus, string cheese, almonds and bananas can encourage improved sleep patterns.
Another aspect that could be negatively affecting sleep is caffeine. According to the Cleveland Clinic, caffeine can stay in the body for up to 10 hours – that is a long time! If you are a lover of coffee, you might want to have your last cup before noon and opt for decaf in the afternoon. Not sure if caffeine could be the culprit?
Try going decaf or opt for lower-caffeinated beverages (such as brewed green tea or herbal tea) in the afternoons for a few days and see if you can notice any improvement in your sleep.
A healthy diet, which is rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, leans proteins and low-fat dairy, is beneficial for our physical and mental health and can lead to better quality sleep regardless of age.
