Sleep Boosting Foods
Trouble sleeping? Check your diet. Eating particular foods can help improving your sleep
Proper sleep is essential for optimal muscle repair. Unfortunately, many of us don’t get anywhere near the recommended 7-9 hours per night.
And if you want to lose weight, skimping on sleep may make it harder to eat healthy. Lack of sleep may increase the circulation of endocannabinoid in the blood, which works to increase your desire to eat by heightening the pleasure you receive from food.
Thankfully, a better night’s rest could be as simple as a trip to the supermarket. Use these edibles to build a sleep-friendly diet and get ready to feel energized like never before.
Salmon
A study in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine discovered that people who consumed salmon three times a week for a six-month period reached deep sleep more quickly compared to subjects who got more of their protein from chicken, beef or pork.
Vitamin D deficiency is linked with impaired sleep quality. Salmon is one of the few food sources of vitamin D.
It appears that vitamin-D deficiency—which is fairly common—negatively influences sleep quality and quantity. Good thing salmon provides between 600-1,000 IU per 3-ounce serving!
Beans
Here’s a good reason to spill the beans more often: Consuming a high-fiber diet can help you spend more time in slow-wave sleep, a stage of deep sleep that is particularly restorative to the body. Beans are an excellent source of fiber—a half-cup has 15 grams!
Researchers found that adding high-fiber options to a diet normally laden in saturated fat and sugar had a powerful impact on sleep quality.
Tart Cherry Juice
Research suggests that sipping tart cherry juice can bring about improved sleep quality and duration.
Tart cherry juice contains melatonin, which is a hormone that may help support sound sleep habits.
The naturally occurring melatonin present in the lip-puckering fruit may work to give it insomnia-busting powers. Melatonin is a hormone that may help support sound sleep habits.
Soy nuts
Due to their high isoflavone content, they may just hold the secret weapon to a restful night’s snooze.
Isoflavones have a mild estrogenic effect, and since estrogen plays a role in sleep regulation, it makes sense that greater intakes could help you score better shut-eye. Soy nuts happen to contain a large amount of isoflavones, which may be why they work great as a nutty nightcap.
Need to know: Look for dry roasted soy nuts to sidestep the poor-quality vegetable oils often used in oil-roasted versions. Tofu, tempeh, miso, soy milk, and flax are other ways to add some isoflavones into your diet to improve your sleep.
Pistachios
Pistachios provide fiber, protein, and heart-healthy fats, and a couple handfuls each day could help you snooze better. The green nuts are a good source of vitamin B-6, a vitamin our bodies need to make slumber-inducing melatonin and the neurotransmitter serotonin.
Pistachios are an excellent source of vitamin B6, which plays a role in sleep-inducing melatonin production.
