Why Sleep Helps You Make Better Food Choices
Stress, an unpredictable work schedule, kids awake at night, the list of possible reasons you’re not getting enough sleep could go on and on. Getting a full seven to eight hours of sleep each night is not only important to maintaining a healthy eating plan but vital for a successful healthy lifestyle. Your body not only needs sleep to heal and restore itself but to function at peak efficiency.
The Sleep-Deprived Brain
Sleep is a biologically necessary function during which your brain cleans, prunes, and prepares itself for another day. Sleep deprivation doesn’t leave it enough time to get this critical work done, which leads to reduced reasoning abilities, decision-making skills, and reaction times. More importantly, lack of sleep changes the amount of hormones released in the body and your brain’s reaction to them.
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Ghrelin: The stomach releases ghrelin to signal the brain when you’re
hungry. Without adequate rest, it gets released in larger amounts, leaving you
feeling far hungrier when you haven’t gotten enough sleep.
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Leptin: Leptin is a hormone that does a lot of things, but one of its more
important functions is to send the satiety signal to the brain. Lack of sleep
causes it to be released in smaller doses, and the brain is slower to respond
to it when you’re tired. The result—you overeat.
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Reward Center: You might have noticed yourself reaching for chips, cookies, and
other high-fat, sugary foods when you’re tired. Junk foods stimulate the reward
center of the brain, and when you’re sleep deprived, the rewards feel even better than usual. That makes you far more likely to eat and keep eating unhealthy foods.
Sleep and Better Food Choices
Sleep deprivation makes it hard to resist the natural impulses of the mind and body.
If you’re working to make better food choices, a commitment to more (and
better) sleep can provide a healthy foundation for your day.
Be sure you have the right sleeping conditions like a comfortable mattress and a dark, quiet bedroom to start. If you’re among those who struggle to sleep at night, there are things you can do to help yourself settle down and get the rest you need for optimum health.
Eat Sleep-Promoting Foods
Certain foods contain more of the vitamins and minerals necessary to produce sleep-inducing hormones like melatonin. Foods high in calcium like dairy products, calcium-fortified orange juice, and spinach (along with other dark leafy greens) contain calcium that’s used to produce melatonin. Almonds and bananas make a good late night snack as they have sleep-promoting B vitamins and potassium.
Healthy, Light Dinner
While everything you eat throughout the day contributes to good sleep, dinner can have a powerful impact on the quality and quantity of the sleep you get. A healthy dinner full of fresh vegetables, fruit, and lean protein contributes to better sleep. Steer clear of heavy, fried foods that may leave you feeling uncomfortably bloated.
Stop the Caffeine
Stimulants like the caffeine found in coffee, soda, and energy drinks will keep you buzzing well into the night if you’re not careful. Avoid drinking them at least four hours before bed to keep from tossing and turning late into the night.
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