Every aspect of your health is affected by sleep. Sleep is an important part of your everyday routine. You spend one-third of your time sleeping.
Getting good sleep for the right amount of time is the key to better physical and mental health. When you sleep, your body has a chance to rest, rejuvenate and restore the energy lost throughout the day.
How Much Sleep Do You Need Daily?
Infants - about 16 hours
Toddlers and preschool children - about 12 hours
Teenagers - about 9 to 10 hours
Adults - about 7 to 8 hours of sleep daily
What is the Sleep-Wake Cycle?
The sleep-wake cycle is your 24-hour daily sleep pattern with 16 hours of staying awake and 8 hours of nighttime sleep. Melatonin and cortisol are the 2 main hormones that help in regulating your sleep patterns.
As a part of your daily sleep-wake cycle, cortisol spikes in the morning, which helps you wake up feeling refreshed. As the day progresses, your levels of cortisol gradually decline, and melatonin levels increase which induces sleep.
Melatonin, known as the sleep hormone, is released before your scheduled time of sleep, in darkness, at a cool, comfortable temperature, and when you relax.
Melatonin is naturally created by the body (released by the pineal gland in the brain) but can also be available as a dietary supplement. It plays a fundamental role in helping you get quality sleep.
How Does the Sleep Cycle Work?
A healthy sleep cycle which is of around 90-110 minutes is divided into 5 stages: wake, light sleep, deep sleep, REM (Rapid Eye Movement), and repeat. REM is the rapid movement of your eyes from side to side behind closed eyelids.
Various factors affect your sleep cycles like food, lighting, environment, medication, body aches, anxiety, and stress, and other lifestyle and cultural changes.
Considering scientific and traditional knowledge coupled with their nutritional profiles, the following are the best foods and drinks that promote good sleep.
10 Foods That Promote Good Sleep
1. Almonds. Almonds contain melatonin in high doses. Almonds also contain magnesium and calcium, the two minerals that relax your muscles and hence promote sleep.
As almonds are high in good fats and low in sugar, they are a healthy evening snack.
2. Walnuts. Walnuts contain melatonin, serotonin, and magnesium, the compounds that promote sleep. Walnuts contain tryptophan, a sleep-enhancing amino acid that helps in the production of melatonin.
Consuming a handful of walnuts before bedtime may help in promoting sleep.
3. Banana. Banana peel and the fruit itself are high sources of magnesium and potassium. These minerals help in relaxing the overstressed muscles and hence promote sleep.
Bananas also contain serotonin and melatonin that help in lowering your stress and anxiety, decrease muscle cramps, and regulate the sleep cycle.
4. Dairy products. Dairy products like yoghurt, milk, paneer, etc., contain tryptophan that produces melatonin. Dairy products have another ingredient, calcium that reduces stress and stabilizes nerve fibres. For good sleep, drink a glass of warm milk before you go to bed.
5. Spinach. Spinach contains vitamin B6 that helps tryptophan to produce melatonin that promotes sleep. Spinach is also high in magnesium and hence, promotes sleep due to its muscle relaxing properties.
6. Cherries. Cherries contain modest amounts of magnesium and phosphorus which relaxes muscles and helps you sleep faster. Cherries also contain melatonin, a sleep-promoting hormone.
Additionally, they are a good source of antioxidants. Cherries also contain anti inflammatory properties, hence, relieves pain after strenuous physical activity.
Drinking cherry juice before bedtime induces sleep and also plays a role in relieving the symptoms of insomnia (difficulty in falling asleep and/or staying asleep).
7. White Rice and Oatmeal. White rice, being high in carbs, has a high glycemic index (a measure of how quickly a food increases your blood sugar).
Eating foods that have a high glycemic index (GI) one hour prior to bedtime improves the quality of your sleep.
Similar to rice, oatmeal is also high in carbs and hence, induces drowsiness when consumed before bed. Oats are also a good source of sleep-promoting hormone, melatonin.
8. Fish. Fish is a good source of vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acids which regulate serotonin. Serotonin is a hormone that majorly establishes a sleep-wake-cycle. Fish also contains sleep-promoting nutrients such as magnesium, potassium, zinc, calcium, etc.
9. Kiwi Fruit. Kiwi is advantageous for sleep as it contains many sleep-promoting compounds such as melatonin, potassium, magnesium, folate, calcium, etc.
Kiwi contains a neurotransmitter, serotonin which regulates your sleep cycle. The high amount of antioxidants due to vitamin C also helps in reducing inflammation, resulting in faster sleep.
Consuming 2-3 medium-size kiwi fruits before bed helps you fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer.
10. Chamomile Tea. Chamomile tea is a popular herbal tea for its soothing and anti inflammatory properties. Mainly the flavones (a type of antioxidants) are responsible for reducing inflammation.
Chamomile tea has also been proven to improve your immune system, reduce anxiety and depression, and also improve skin health. The antioxidants in chamomile tea bind with certain receptors in the brain that promotes sleep and reduce insomnia.
To gain the benefits of sleep-promoting foods and drinks, it is best to consume them 1–3 hours prior to bedtime. Eating immediately before going to bed may cause digestive issues, such as acid reflux (heartburn).
Disclaimer: This article is written by the Practitioner for informational and educational purposes only. The content presented on this page should not be considered as a substitute for medical expertise. Please "DO NOT SELF-MEDICATE" and seek professional help regarding any health conditions or concerns. Practo will not be responsible for any act or omission arising from the interpretation of the content present on this page.