14 Foods That Can Help You Sleep

It is no longer news that a good nights sleep is one of the world's best doctors.  No matter the ailment, the first sign of recovery begins with sound sleep.  The benefits of a good night sleep goes beyond helping you heal, it brings out your beauty, controls your sugar, lowers blood pressure, heals diarrhea, settles constipation, stops inflammations, reduces tension, calms the brain and mind.  Just name the disease.  It is important therefore that we eat foods that will help us sleep well at night.

It is surprising that many adult are not aware that what they eat during the day affects how  well they will sleep at night.

Here are 14  Proven Foods that will Help you Sleep

1.  Bananas

Fresh bananas is one of the best foods if you are looking forward to a good night sleep it contains B6
helps in melatonin production.  I have severally consumed bananas at night and it really works especially when combined with cinnamon powder and a little honey.  No sleep inducing drug or medication will surpass the synergy of these three natural foods. Ensure not to overdo it, because bananas are high in sugar.

2.  Yoghurt

If you suffer insomnia, try fresh yoghurt, especially the ones with life cultures, real probiotics.  Unfortunately, most yogurts are ladden with sugar and artificial flavour.  Try going for a well fermented yogurt at night and see how easy you will fall asleep, additionally,  yogurt is easily digested and assimilated than milk.  Though all dairy products like milk, chicken, eggs are great when you want to have a good night sleep

3.  Almonds

Almonds  contain tryptophan and magnesium,  which both help to naturally reduce muscle and nerve function while also steadying you heart rhythm during sleep.  Other nuts like peanut, coconut, macademia nuts, and pistachios are foods that help induce sleep due to the naturally occurring nutrients in them.

4.  Oats

Oats are rich in B6, magnesium and other nutrients that help your brain prepare sleep. 

5.  Sweet Potatoes

Yes, it is best to avoid starchy foods at night because of the pounds they may add to you while sleeping, however sweet potatoes is exempted due to its nutrient density loaded with potassium, magnesiumm,calcium and iron to help you relax at night, it is best taken with a little olive oil and backed with soy powder to add protein to eat.  if you are not in love with  soy, then go for nut butter, fish sauce with cabbage, sea salt, cinnamon powder and honey.

6.  Fish

Fatty fish are all good for sleep, best in this category are the tuna, salmon, sardines and omega 3 rich fishes which all contain B6 needed to make melatonin for a good sleep.

7.  Healthy Fats

Top on this list to help you sleep well at night are avocados, cashew nuts, olive oil, coconut oil, pears, red palm oil, organic peanut oil and all healthy fats that support brain health.

8.  Walnuts

Walnuts are rich in omega 3 fatty acids and help you sleep well, only avoid it at night, if you have sensitive stomach.  I prefer to take my walnuts midday and all full digestion and assimilation before bed time.  The reason is because it cause my stomach to produce acid at night, but works best, when taken few hours, say mid day before bed time.  Although individual  body may differ, others may do well with walnut anytime, even at point of sleep.

9.  Herbal teas

A lot of herbal teas out there are great for inducing sleep.  Teas like chamomile, soghurm tea, are good moreso, they have zero calorie and zero fat. Ensure you had a good dinner earlier,if not herbal teas may end up disturbing your sleep if nothing is in the stomach.  Such was my experience.

10.  Soy powder

Another protein rich food that has been helpful to me is soy powder, particularly the brand I use, there are good and well processed soy product that have all the antioxidants while some are poorly processed making them even toxic.  So be careful when choosing a soy product because soy is high in phytate which must be removed during processing to make digestion and absorption easy.

11.  Honey

A good honey supports your liver and help you sleep effortlessly, while nourishing you at the same time.  Only ensure to get a good one.  Honey is nutrient dense and does not produce gas.

12.  Date

Date is another food that really works perfectly to send me to sleep even at mid night.  I love date, ones tucked in the mouth, during times of insomnia before you know it, its already morning time.  Try soaking it if you plan to use it as your sleep aid at nigh.

13. Cayenne Pepper

One spice I will confidently recommend for sleep especially to menopausal women who usually have issues with sleep is cayenne pepper.  It is great for circulation and helps your sleep throughout the night.  Try adding it to your meals for dinner, include garlic and sea salt also and you experience a good and uninterrupted sleep.

14.  Millet

Millet grain is in the grain family grains are also good for sleep, but millet is richer in protein than most of the grains especially when fermented, it is serotonin food and will help you sleep better.

 There are severally other foods that help you sleep, milk is in the list, so also is moringa leaf, okra,  kale, spinach, chicken, eggs, and of course a good body massage will help relax the muscles and help you sleep.

Ref:  www.sleepfoundation.org
         www.eatingwell.com
         www.goodhousekeeping.com