7 Foods To Help You Sleep
by Samantha Coogan, MS, RDN, LD
Bananas
Bananas contain the muscle-relaxing minerals potassium and magnesium, which can help you to get to sleep a little quicker. They also have tryptophan, which gets converted to serotonin and melatonin, which helps you feel relaxed.
Cherries
These are like natural sleeping pills! As an excellent source of melatonin, fresh cherries (when in season) or tart cherry juice (when out of season) proved to give insomnia sufferers 90 more minutes of sleep per night in a Louisiana State University research study.
Eggs
An excellent protein source, along with choline, folate and vitamin D, hard boiled eggs are an easy pre-bed snack, especially paired with avocado. Remember, high-protein, low-fat snacks can help reduce acid reflux.
Kiwis
Filled with potassium, calcium, phosphorous, folate and magnesium for a more relaxed sleep. Try out the Kiwi Mango Chia Pudding (Dolce Diet Living Lean Cookbook Vol. 2) as your after-dinner snack!
Nonfat Greek yogurt or low-fat cottage cheese
High-protein, low-fat containing foods can help fight off acid reflux, a common trigger for restless nights and interrupted sleep. These dairy products are also great sources of calcium, which aids in melatonin production and muscle contraction.
Salmon
Choosing salmon for dinner will pump you full of DHA, the omega-3 fatty acid found in fatty fish. DHA concentrations in blood have been found to have a strong connection to sleep quality according to recent research.
Spinach
A great source of potassium, calcium and lutein, it’s an easy addition to any snack or smoothie and will provide you with muscle-relaxing nutrients.
