Want a good sleep, which food should you eat?

Sleep plays a really important role in our overall health - besides a healthy diet, stress control and regular exercise.

Recently, researchers have conducted further research on how harms of poor quality sleep affect our diet, as well as how diet affects the quality of sleep. Not getting enough sleep or not sleeping well is closely related to increasing food intake, tendency to choose unhealthy foods and gain weight. Lack of sleep also leads to more snacking (because you are awake and have nothing to do or need extra energy when working).

Basically, poor sleep motivates your body to find high energy foods to keep you awake, which makes it hard to crave unhealthy foods. But, on the other hand, when we sleep well, our hormones are normal. We no longer have the craving for unhealthy food, but we can also make better choices for our diet.

Sleep under a scientific perspective

All cultures in the world have a tradition of foods that promote sleep quality.Foods like milk, chrysanthemum, kiwifruit and cherry, are all believed to be the magic dose for a good night's sleep . Considering that we all have to eat, and eat every day throughout our lives, it is not surprising that our diet plays a big role in the quality of sleep. What we eat also has a major impact on organ function, immune system, hormone production and brain function.

Diet plays a big role in sleep quality.

A hormone that is really important to control our sleep patterns is melatonin . Melatonin is produced in the brain. The amount of melatonin you create and the effect our brain uses is affected by our diet. One of the biggest effects on our melatonin is a protein called tryptophan . Tryptophan is an essential amino acid - the building blocks for protein. Essential amino acids are a group that our bodies cannot create, it is only supplemented through diet.

Other nutrients that seem useful for sleep include vitamin B and magnesium. This is because they help tryptophan increase absorption in the body. If your diet lacks tryptophan, vitamin B or magnesium, your ability to produce and excrete melatonin will be affected and your sleep quality will be poor.

Eat to sleep

That's why too strict a diet will lead to a risk of nutrient deficiency and can actually affect your sleep. But by increasing the amount of nutritious food, you can improve the quality and duration of sleep better.

For example, dairy foods can help you sleep well. Cow's milk is not only a great source of tryptophan but also contains B-group vitamins and magnesium to help promote the activity and availability of tryptophan. Nuts, like milk, also contain nutrients that promote the production of melatonin and support the release of the substance.

Milk and nuts enhance sleep.

Fish is a great source of tryptophan and vitamin B. Bone fish, such as sardines, will also provide magnesium. Regularly adding fish in your diet can help boost melatonin production when you need it. Peas, beans and lentils also contain a large amount of tryptophan and B vitamins. Adding a lot of tofu to a vegetable or curry stew can also increase your chances of getting a good night's sleep. You can also add some types of soybeans - a good source of tryptophan - to optimize your sleep quality.

And if you're still struggling to sleep, you'll probably find improvement from some meats. Meat types contain all the essential ingredients for a good sleep. So if you can't sleep at night, think about adding some lean meat to your diet.

The food contains many Tritophan.

If you find yourself hungry before going to bed and want snacks, try a thin glass of milk (also called skim milk), a small banana or a few nuts - all of which can help improve sleep. and your spirit the next day. It should also be pointed out that it takes about an hour to tryptophan in food to reach the brain, so do not wait until you are about to go to bed to eat snacks to supplement. Scientists also encourage a balanced diet that includes a variety of foods that have a lot of tryptophan throughout the day to optimize your chances of getting a good night's sleep.