Do you tend to skip breakfast and then raid the fridge for those midnight snacks?
You wouldn’t be alone with the tummy rumbles and the urge to treat yourself; we’ve all been there, opening the fridge door, or the cupboard as you scan for something that will do the trick and silence the rumbling and end the hunger pangs you’re experiencing.
Nine times out of 10 there’s a snack you can get your hands on that will, at the very least, satisfy you in the short-term and let you get some sound slumber. But there’s a catch…
Occasionally, when the snack on the late-night menu is the right one, it can have some wonderful benefits such as losing weight, shed pounds, however, there are plenty of foods that are on the no-go menu too.
By eating the wrong foods before bed, you can set yourself up for issues like indigestion and an evening in bed that is littered with restlessness.
So, with this in mind, we’re going to delve into a rich list of some of the truly terrible food choices you can make before slipping off to bed. We apologize in advance because you might well come across some of your favorites here (it might even be all six)!
Don’t take the cake
Yes, we know that reaching for that last sliver isn’t going to kill you, but it certainly won’t do any good either! Cake is typically rich in high fats and this induces acid reflux.
You might not have realized just how much fat foods like cake contain, and that’s because it’s disguised by the excessive sugar it’s teamed with, to an extent. All foods that you consume will generate a rise in your body’s acid production, but it’s the high-fat foods that bring on the chances of reflux issues when you are trying to sleep.
Stay away from the ice cream
Ah, the temptation to indulge in a couple of scoops of your favorite ice cream when it’s a warm evening… Don’t do it, or the solid night of premium sleep you had in mind will fall by the wayside!
Eating dairy has the potential to give you an upset stomach, and even if you know that you’re not lactose intolerant, eating ice cream really is not a wise choice for a bedtime snack. It’s heavy on the digestive system, high in fat and will likely sit in your tummy without any likelihood of shifting any time soon which will keep you from enjoying a good night’s sleep.
Pizza is not for late snacking
Most pizzas, unless specifically ordered otherwise, have a tomato sauce base on them. tomatoes contain acids and yet again you’re tum is in for a potentially bad time if you sneak that leftover piece in right before bed.
What’s more, if you’re a fan of the spicy stuff and there are some chilli flakes on there too, you could have a double whammy of indigestion and bouts of having to dash to the loo thanks to your body rejecting the spice and acidic pizza!
Citrus Fruit
You think you’ve done the right thing by swerving the naughty sweets and picked up some fruit instead, but citrus isn’t an ideal choice to eat before bed. Citrus acts as a natural diuretic and the citrus also leads you needing to tinkle more often as well, which is never great when you’re trying to get some kip.
Save the chocolate for another time
The caffeine contained in your tasty chocolaty treat is just the thing to keep you awake for far longer than you desire. While not on the same scale as a cup of coffee, chocolate certainly contains enough trace of caffeine to alter your sleep for the worse.
Caffeine Content states that “milk chocolate contains about 3.5 to 6mg of caffeine per ounce. That is about 12 to 21mg of caffeine per 3.5 ounce or 100g chocolate”. So, with this in mind, you’d be well-advised to give the chocolate before bed a miss if good sleep is what you’re chasing.
Don’t get involved with frozen, processed, pre-packaged, meals
Not quite a snack, but frozen meals, while super convenient, can set you up for up for a bedtime of unsettled sleep. This is due to the fact that frozen meals like this usually come complete with a really high level of sodium content.
The American Heart Association cite that more than three-quarters of sodium we consume can be traced back to processed, pre-packaged and restaurant meals we dine on.
Experts believe that there are strong associations with those who eat a diet that is higher in sodium will enjoy fewer good hours of sleep compared to those who digest less sodium.
If you’re hankering for a bedtime snack or beverage, don’t just grab the first thing that sounds good. While some foods — a light, carby snack like crackers or an apple — can actually help your sleep, many others can disrupt your sleep, causing nightmares, an irritated tummy, insomnia and sleep-interrupting trips to the potty. I hope your tips will really help many of them. Thanks for sharing here.
Good post. I rarely have “the munchies,” but I must say I always want cheese. Of course, I always want cheese. I never have any of the other things in my kitchen, so maybe that’s good, incase one day I want ice cream instead of cheese!