People say you shouldn’t eat before bed but not everyone really knows why. Many of us have probably tried eating then going to sleep and still wonder what might happen. Well, let me answer your curiosity.
So, why shouldn’t you eat before bed? You should not eat a heavy meal 2 to 3 hours before bed because your body’s metabolism slows down, making sleeping a lot more difficult and causes unhealthy risks.
You are placing yourself at risk of uncontrolled weight gain, interrupted sleep, difficult breathing, complicated appetite and other health issues.
However, you must keep in mind, it’s not that you can’t eat before bed.
You just can’t eat a heavy meal 2 or 3 hours before bed, but if 4 to 5 hours have passed since your last heavy meal and you are still awake, you are allowed to eat a light snack.
Going to bed with a heavy stomach makes it harder for your body to digest it and burn the fat. In other words, your metabolism is slower than when you are awake.
Any undigested calories will be stored as fat, causing you to gain weight.
Since your body is also busy burning the food you ingested, breathing can be difficult. Which one to do first? Digest or breathe? It can’t be helped if your body becomes “pressured” and not know what to do first.
So what comes next after difficult breathing? Disrupted sleep.
There’s a good chance that you might wake up gasping for air or just simply wake up because your stomach is too active.
Suddenly waking up during sleep can be bad for your health especially if it also involves breathing problems. It may eventually affect your heart or brain too.
Because you also ate late at night and went to bed straight away, you may not have the appetite to eat breakfast once you wake in the morning.
Why? Because you may still feel full from last night’s food.
Skipping your breakfast or lunch can lead you to eat more in the late hours of noon to evening, starting a cycle that can be difficult to break.
Continuous disrupted sleep and difficult breathing can trigger other complicated health issues.
It must be overwhelming to see how one small thing, which is the time of eating your last meal, can lead to big problems if not handled properly.
This is why it’s important to stick to eating 2 or 3 hours away from bed time.
(Related: “What is the Latest you Should Eat Before Bed?”)
Why should you eat before bed?
Since we already talked about why you SHOULDN’T eat before bed… let’s talk about why you SHOULD. Don’t be confused, let me explain…!
Yes, you must not eat a heavy meal 2 or 3 hours before bed, but you should still eat before sleeping because sleeping with an empty stomach or going to bed hungry is not as healthy as you think.
If it’s important to eat 2 or 3 hours away from your bed time, how about not eating at all? You might be asking that yourself after learning the 2 or 3 hour rule.
You don’t always have to worry about eating your dinner at the right time.
In fact, people who eat more late night (midnight snack lovers, movie watchers or such) are more at risk than people who sleep after their last heavy meal.
Eating your heavy meal and combined with other unhealthy, unbalanced snacks or meals late at night is more dangerous than going to bed with an empty stomach or going to bed 1 hour after a heavy meal.
Going to sleep hungry or with a completely empty stomach is not good for your health and make sleeping difficult.
Contrary to the popular belief, eating a light snack is actually healthier than sleeping hungry. Having something inside your stomach helps you feel full, allowing you to sleep better.
There’s also a chance of waking up during random hours at night due to your starving stomach.
So, don’t even think about skipping dinner and going to bed. You will only end up making your health and sleep a lot worse or harder!
It is when you eat late at night with unbalanced meals that is more dangerous to your health.
What should you eat before bed?
It’s mentioned that if you’re still awake 4 to 5 hours after your
last heavy meal, you are allowed to eat one light snack. Are you
wondering what kind of snack is the best option for you?
Aside
from those chips, sweets and other popular midnight cravings… there are
also healthy choices that may appeal to you, if you’re trying to get
away from the unhealthy diet.
Bananas, cheese, honey, oats,
almonds, turkey, tea, cherries, salmon and sweet potatoes are examples
of best food choices before going to sleep.
- Bananas
- Bananas also produces melatonin, a hormone that helps your body know when it’s time to sleep and wake up. Therefore, eating bananas before going to sleep will promote healthy sleep.
- Cheese
- Different kinds of cheese contain tryptophan. It is an amino acid that increases the amount of serotonin and melatonin being produced inside your body.
- The higher serotonin and melatonin you have, the easier and better you can sleep. Consume moderately to avoid getting unwanted or unexpected side effects.
- Honey
- One
teaspoon of honey is already enough to stimulate the amount of
melatonin being released inside your brain and manage the levels of
orexin, the chemicals that keeps us alert.
Since it shuts off orexin and improve melatonin, sleeping is much easier too.
- One
teaspoon of honey is already enough to stimulate the amount of
melatonin being released inside your brain and manage the levels of
orexin, the chemicals that keeps us alert.
- Oats
- Though
it is known as a breakfast food, it’s also great for midnight snacks.
It contains various vitamins, amino acids and minerals that promote
melatonin and insulin production.
The increased amount of insulin caused by eating oat will help make you feel full which will help you sleep better too.
- Though
it is known as a breakfast food, it’s also great for midnight snacks.
It contains various vitamins, amino acids and minerals that promote
melatonin and insulin production.
- Almonds
- Not only does it contain healthy fats, almonds are also rich in magnesium as well as tryptophan which is why they are one of the good choices for midnight snacks
- Magnesium makes your sleep better since it can reduce inflammation, making sure you don’t feel any fatigue after waking up.
It also reduces stress levels by eliminating the stress hormone cortisol.
- Turkey
- Turkey is rich in tryptophan that makes serotonin. Serotonin can give us the feeling of drowsiness, promoting easy sleep.
The presence of tryptophan in turkey also promotes melatonin production, the sleep regulating hormone.
- Turkey is rich in tryptophan that makes serotonin. Serotonin can give us the feeling of drowsiness, promoting easy sleep.
- Tea
- Tea is good at affecting the neurotransmitters in our brain positively and helps induce sleepiness, it also helps our muscles relax.
- Examples: Chamomile tea, Valerian tea, lemon balm tea, passion flower tea, magnolia bark tea, Kava tea, peppermint tea and St. John’s wort tea
- Cherries
- Cherry is high in nutrients like vitamin A, vitamin C and manganese.
It’s rich in antioxidants including anthocyanins and flavonols that protect your cells from harmful inflammation.
Eating cherry is good for raising melatonin levels, helping you sleep more comfortably. It also increases the level of tryptophan inside your body!
- Cherry is high in nutrients like vitamin A, vitamin C and manganese.
- Salmon
- Fatty fish like salmon, halibut, trout, mackerel, and tuna are rich in vitamin B6, a vitamin needed for melatonin production that will help you sleep.
- Aside from vitamin B6, they also have vitamin D which is important to your body too. Fatty fish are rich in healthy fats such as omega-3 fatty acids and EPA as well as DHA.
- These healthy fats are known to reduce inflammation, improving the quality of sleep. It can also protect you from heart disease and improve the brain’s health.
- The combination of omega-3 fatty acids together with vitamin D makes it perfect for enhancing sleep quality.
- Sweet Potatoes
- The carbs and potassium that it contains are proven to promote better sleep!
(Related: What are The Best Foods to Eat Before Going to Sleep?)
Related Questions
Does going to bed after eating cause nightmares?
Dream related topics are still being studied by scientists and health experts as of today, but there is one possible explanation why people who sleep with their stomach full tend to get nightmares.
As a personal opinion, going to sleep after eating a heavy meal can possibly cause difficult breathing since your body’s metabolism is slowed down.
It’s too busy on digesting the food but it’s slowed down, making it harder to breathe. When we experience difficult breathing, the brain might find a way to “force” you to wake up.
The brain can do that by emulating a vision during sleep, by showing an alarming image that can cause you to wake up and breathe. So, in a sense, nightmares can be the brain’s way of saving you from death during sleep.
Why do I feel hungry at night?
Studies reveal that people are most hungry during the evening especially after going through various daytime activities. Energy is depleted and thus, people would feel hungry to replenish their energy by eating.
It can also be the result of restricted daytime food intake, making you a lot hungrier at night.
Sometimes, extreme hunger at night can also be mistaken for boredom or eating habits. It’s also normal to crave large amount of food at night if you’re stressed, depressed or having emotional problems.
Should I eat or sleep?
You should eat and then sleep. What you should do is eat a proper meal during dinner at least 2 to 3 hours before sleeping to avoid complicated health issues.
Going to sleep with a full stomach is bad, but going to sleep with an empty stomach is also bad. To keep it balanced, keep your dinner 2 or 3 hours away from your bed time.
