How the foods you eat (and at what time you eat them) can impact your quality of sleep.
There are many strategies to improve your sleep.
I outlined nine you can try in a previous article.
If you’re struggling with falling or staying asleep, it’s worth addressing what you’re eating, when you’re eating it and knowing what foods may help!
I read eleven papers to give you five takeaways on the topic:
The majority of studies and papers support the idea that you should probably limit large amounts of saturated fat right before bedtime. A high intake can decrease the time spent in certain stages of sleep and decrease overall sleep quality. (1) (2) (3) (4)
However, there are some mixed results as there’s evidence that there’s no difference between high carb or high fat four hours before bedtime. (3)
So, saturated fat isn’t ‘bad’ (especially when you get it from a steak as opposed to a fast food burger) but making sure you’re not eating a huge quantity of saturated fat right before bed may help the quality of your sleep.
An increased intake of fiber is a great idea (for more than just sleep)
Something that is generally agreed on is that having a lower intake of fiber is associated with less deep sleep! Higher fiber intakes will help with having deeper and more restorative sleeps. (4)
Higher carbs can be useful if you struggle with falling asleep. There’s evidence that having a higher carb meal with quicker-digesting carbs four hours before bed can help you fall asleep quicker. (2)
Pair this with tryptophan-rich food! (ideally you should already be having a decent amount of protein throughout the day – some of these sources being tryptophan-rich eg. turkey, chicken, milk, cheese, eggs etc.).
Why is this?
The slightly more complex version: You probably know the hormone called ‘melatonin’ and how it helps you fall asleep at night (when it’s mostly secreted). In your brain, melatonin is produced by converting an amino acid called ‘tryptophan’ into ‘serotonin’. Carbs can help this conversion happen more effectively as their consumption kicks off a process (thanks to the insulin response) that results in competing amino acids (large-chain neural amino acids) being shuttled away and allowing more tryptophan to enter the brain (creating serotonin). ie. (there’s an improved TRP-to-LCNAA ratio) (2) (3)
Don’t really care about the scientific version: Carbs and tryptophan can help you fall asleep quicker because more melatonin is produced. This process peaks 2-4 hours after eating a high carb meal.
One caveat: This doesn’t necessarily mean more is merrier!
Increasing your intake of non-fiber carbs is associated with more arousals at night and less deep sleep. (2) (3) (4)
So! A higher carb meal about four hours from bedtime (alongside some tryptophan-rich food) can help you fall asleep quicker. However, going overboard with the carbs close to bedtime can potentially negatively impact your sleep (find a balance).
This is also probably more to do with just having a healthy diet in general. There’s nothing wrong with carbs (they’re very useful) but if you’re consuming lots of sugary and processed foods (carb rich) then it’s going to negatively impact your sleep.
What would a higher carb and tryptophan-rich meal look like?
Vitamin and mineral deficiencies are associated with disrupted sleep, just as there’s an association between sleep issues and oxidative stress. (2) (3)
This highlights the importance of including lots of nutrient dense foods and foods that are high in beneficial compounds like polyphenols (that have antioxidant properties).
This may be why consuming two kiwifruit an hour before bed has been shown in a few papers to improve sleep quality! They contain antioxidants (Vit C and E) that suppress oxidative stress and also contain folate (folate is important for the production of serotonin), melatonin and serotonin (remember these hormones help you fall asleep easier!) (9)
Some other examples:
• Milk: Studies show improvement in sleep after consuming milk. Why would milk help? Tryptophan and melatonin (as discussed earlier) but also vitamins such as Vit D and B12 can improve your sleep if you’re deficient. (2)
• Tart Cherries: Antioxidant ability and melatonin (3) (10)
• Zinc rich oysters: Ingesting minerals like zinc on a daily basis helps to maintain (and improve) sleep. (11)
We can conclude that ensuring you’re consuming a wide range of nutrient-dense whole foods that are full of vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients and other beneficial compounds will give you the best chance of getting great sleep.
Eating at times that go against your circadian rhythm (eg. eating in the middle of the night) can throw off processes in other bodily tissues (like your liver). This misalignment isn’t ideal and you’re better off trying to get a somewhat regular routine with your meal timing!
At what time does having dinner influence your quality of sleep?
Eating too close to bedtime can result in more awakenings through the night. For example, eating a high-calorie and high-fat meal 30-60 minutes before sleep is correlated with taking longer to fall asleep, worse quality sleep and waking up more through the night. (6)
You have to consider your normal digestive processes (your digestive tract activity decreases upon sleep which could cause discomfort if you just ate a lot of food) and reflux (which can occur with late meals). (1) (6)
Experiencing these isn’t going to help you get a good night’s rest.
In general it’s accepted that eating a large meal less than an hour before bedtime can result in worse sleep and less than 3 hours may contribute to waking up more in the night. One paper suggested that eating between 4 and 6 hours before bedtime may be best for optimal sleep. (1) (6) (7) (8)
But weren’t we saying earlier that having the carb rich meal 2-4 hrs before bed and the kiwi fruit 1 hr before bed would assist your sleep? There’s also the milk, which was consumed 30 minutes before bed!?
Taking this into account, it may be wise to have your large meal about 4 hours before bed and then smaller/lighter foods any time closer to bed (like two kiwis and some milk!).
I know all of these times, what kinds of foods you’re eating, how many hours before they work best etc is confusing and seems excessive.
But, the simple takeaway is that it may be better not eating massive amounts of food right before bed (but if you’re hungry have smaller meals/snacks/sleep-promoting foods) and trying to have these larger meals further away from sleep time.
What you eat and when you eat it is something worth considering if you’re looking for ways to improve your sleep. As usual, it comes down to eating a well-balanced, nutrient-dense diet that is full of sleep-promoting compounds (like fiber, vitamins/minerals, antioxidants, tryptophan etc). Moving your larger meals further away from bedtime may also help. If you’re hungry before bed you could choose lighter snacks/meals and even incorporate some sleep-promoting foods like kiwis and milk!
1) Crispim, Cibele Aparecida et al. “Relationship between food intake and sleep pattern in healthy individuals.” Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine vol. 7,6 (2011): 659-64. doi:10.5664/jcsm.1476
2) St-Onge, Marie-Pierre et al. “Effects of Diet on Sleep Quality.” Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.) vol. 7,5 938-49. 15 Sep. 2016, doi:10.3945/an.116.012336
3) Binks, Hannah et al. “Effects of Diet on Sleep: A Narrative Review.” Nutrients vol. 12,4 936. 27 Mar. 2020, doi:10.3390/nu12040936
4) St-Onge, Marie-Pierre et al. “Fiber and Saturated Fat Are Associated with Sleep Arousals and Slow Wave Sleep.” Journal of clinical sleep medicine : JCSM : official publication of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine vol. 12,1 (2016): 19-24. doi:10.5664/jcsm.5384
5) Duan, Daisy et al. “Effects of Dinner Timing on Sleep Stage Distribution and EEG Power Spectrum in Healthy Volunteers.” Nature and science of sleep vol. 13 601-612. 14 May. 2021, doi:10.2147/NSS.S301113
6) Chung, Nikola et al. “Does the Proximity of Meals to Bedtime Influence the Sleep of Young Adults? A Cross-Sectional Survey of University Students.” International journal of environmental research and public health vol. 17,8 2677. 14 Apr. 2020, doi:10.3390/ijerph17082677
7) Yasuda, Jun, Nanami Kishi, and Satoshi Fujita. 2023. "Association between Time from Dinner to Bedtime and Sleep Quality Indices in the Young Japanese Population: A Cross-Sectional Study" Dietetics 2, no. 2: 140-149. https://doi.org/10.3390/dietetics2020011
8) Iao, Su I et al. “Associations between bedtime eating or drinking, sleep duration and wake after sleep onset: findings from the American time use survey.” The British journal of nutrition, vol. 127,12 1-10. 13 Sep. 2021, doi:10.1017/S0007114521003597
9) Doherty, Rónán et al. “The Impact of Kiwifruit Consumption on the Sleep and Recovery of Elite Athletes.” Nutrients vol. 15,10 2274. 11 May. 2023, doi:10.3390/nu15102274
10) Howatson, Glyn et al. “Effect of tart cherry juice (Prunus cerasus) on melatonin levels and enhanced sleep quality.” European journal of nutrition vol. 51,8 (2012): 909-16. doi:10.1007/s00394-011-0263-7
11) Saito, Hitomi et al. “Zinc-rich oysters as well as zinc-yeast- and astaxanthin-enriched food improved sleep efficiency and sleep onset in a randomized controlled trial of healthy individuals.” Molecular nutrition & food research vol. 61,5 (2017): 10.1002/mnfr.201600882. doi:10.1002/mnfr.201600882
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