Good sleep is vital.
Yet many people struggle with insomnia.
Often there are banal causes behind it - such as the wrong diet.
Do you sleep like a rock and get at least seven hours of sleep every night? Then you are one of the lucky "good sleepers".
But there are countless people who cannot find peace at night. Difficulty falling asleep and staying asleep can have many different reasons.
For some it is sorrow and worry that will not let you sleep. But shift work and an incorrectly set internal clock associated with it can also have an immense impact on the quality of sleep. Do you always wake up at three or four in the morning? You can find out how to outsmart the "wolf hour" here.
But even those who eat the wrong food in the evening endanger sleep.
For example, a research group led by Katri Peuhkuri from the University of Helsinki informs: "Overall, foods that influence the availability of tryptophan and the synthesis of serotonin and melatonin are possibly the most helpful for promoting sleep".
On the other hand
, according to
the specialist portal
openscience
,
fatty food should be
avoided before going to bed, as the body has to use a lot of energy to
break down
food, which has a negative impact on sleep.
Late, high-calorie meals should also be avoided, it said.
But which foods promote good sleep?
Also interesting:
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With this trick you can finally make it to bed earlier
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Eating habits in the evening can also keep you awake at night.
© Simona Pilolla / Imago
Sleep-promoting foods: How milk, dates, and magnesium are supposed to promote sleep
The following nutrients should develop sleep-promoting effects:
Zinc (contained in milk, cheese, nuts, and legumes):
Walnuts are also good sources of zinc
.
They also provide vitamin B6 and magnesium, which has a positive effect on melatonin formation in the brain, as the
Fitbook
portal
informs.
Melatonin is considered to be the ultimate sleep hormone.
It regulates the day-night rhythm.
Eggs:
According to
Fitbook
,
eggs are
"tiny, extremely nutritious L-tryptophan bombs".
The amino acid tryptophan is the precursor of the neurotransmitter serotonin and has an influence on mood, performance and well-being, informs the Wolfs Apotheke in Bredstedt (Schleswig-Holstein). The body also needs tryptophan to make melatonin and niacin. L-tryptophan is mainly found in protein-containing foods, it is said.
Magnesium (contained in Emmentaler, bananas, and peas, for example): In an Iranian study, the participating scientists came to the conclusion
that older people with sleep problems in particular could benefit from magnesium food supplements
. The researchers led by Behnood Abbasi from the Faculty of Nutrition and Food Technology in Tehran write: "Compared to the placebo group, magnesium supplementation led to a statistically significant increase in sleep duration and sleep efficiency in the test group". According to the researchers, the melatonin levels would also have been increased in the “magnesium group”.
Milk:
Milk and milk products also
contain a lot of tryptophan, which produces serotonin in the human body.
According to the
fitforfun
portal
,
this promotes
healthy sleep.
Dates
: According to the openscience portal, dates (also in dried form) are
supposed
to
promote sleep
because they contain the amino acid tryptophan, from which melatonin can be formed in the body.
(jg)
List of rubric lists: © Simona Pilolla / Imago