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hi i'm jess cording i'm a registered dietitian health coach and author and today i want to talk

to you about what to eat for better sleep one of my pet peeves is when i see when i see someone say

get seven hours of uninterrupted sleep but then offer absolutely no tips as for how to do that

you know so many of us struggle with sleep and i've been there myself and the good news is that

there are different practices that can help us have better sleep at night one thing we might not

think about very often but that can make a really big difference is what we eat as our last meal or

snack so there's actually certain nutrients in different foods that help support more restful

sleep at night so i'm going to share a few important ones to focus on so we'll talk about

some of the nutrients that can make a difference and good food sources i'll also share a few ideas

for bedtime snacks if that's helpful so first off we have melatonin so this is a hormone that

regulates our circadian rhythm our sleep cycle so melatonin we can actually find in some foods so

eggs nuts tart cherries another great source so this is one to incorporate into your evening

routine so another important compound for sleep is serotonin so this mood regulating brain chemical

is involved in melatonin production so it can help you when we have the right level of serotonin it

helps us drift off and stay asleep peacefully so while there aren't necessarily foods that contain

serotonin there are certain foods that can help support more stable levels

things that are involved in the production of serotonin so one of those is an amino acid called

tryptophan maybe you've heard of it and jokes about falling asleep after thanksgiving dinner

and it's true that tryptophan is found in turkey um so this amino acid is a precursor to serotonin

meaning that when we have enough tryptophan that helps our body make enough serotonin so some good

food sources beyond just turkey on thanksgiving um basically any animal protein so poultry meat fish

eggs dairy products you're also going to find it in a few plant foods for example oats also honey

and chickpeas as well so those are all some good sources of tryptophan to include

another important nutrient for sleep is calcium so this is a mineral that is involved in cell

signaling muscle and nerve function and is good for helping us settle down and rest so a few

sources you can find it obviously dairy products are probably the most well-known source of calcium

but it also can be found in tofu you know a little bit in white beans and sesame

a little bit in almonds as well as in salmon

if you prefer to get calcium from a supplement source a great option might be to take your

calcium supplement before bed so that way it'll become active as you're sleeping and help you

stay asleep so vitamin b6 this is a great nutrient for supporting stable levels of both melatonin and

serotonin there's a wide variety of food sources that you can utilize to get vitamin b6 so a few

great sources of vitamin b6 to add to your evening meal or snack white beans chicken eggs bananas

all easy ways to work some in now potassium is a mineral that's involved in muscle and nerve

function so if you are at all twitchy and have any restlessness in your limbs sometimes potassium can

help at night or if you're experiencing muscle cramps that prevent you from sleeping comfortably

so you're going to find it in a lot of different food sources a few really good ones to work in are

leafy greens tomatoes cantaloupe winter squash avocado is a wonderful source obviously bananas

bananas get the most airtime but they're not the only game in town when it comes to potassium

magnesium is another mineral that plays a role in muscle and nerve function but it also is involved

in managing blood pressure and blood sugar both of which are involved in promoting restful sleep

so magnesium is a really good one to pay attention to if you feel very tense in the evening or if you

have if you're prone to nighttime anxiety and stress it's kind of like nature's muscle relaxer

so you're going to find it in things like bananas nuts and seeds whole grains dairy products bananas

so a lot of different sources as well as leafy greens chicken just to name a few so incorporating

these into your evening meal or snack can be really helpful in promoting more restful sleep

but it could also be beneficial to incorporate a supplement as well i would recommend obviously

checking with your doctor about the right dosage for you but there's a wide range of sleep focused

magnesium supplements on the market that you can take right before you get in bed that will help

you drift off and stay asleep for the night so definitely something to consider carbohydrates

are a big one for helping you fall asleep and stay asleep because when we eat carbohydrates

as we digest them insulin is released and that insulin release also helps promote uptake and

utilization of amino acids including tryptophan the catch here i would say when it comes to

carbohydrates though is to reach for complex carbs you know these are things like whole grains

starchy vegetables like sweet potatoes whole grain bread if you're having bread at night

these are foods that are going to digest more slowly so rather than if you were to say eat you

know a lot of white flour or something really sugary your blood sugar would be more stable

over the course of the evening as opposed to a quick spike and dip which can be disruptive to

sleep so carbs can definitely be helpful when it comes to falling asleep and staying asleep

i would say though i would avoid having a very large heavy meal before bed because that can

be a lot for the body to digest and that can be disruptive to sleep i would also recommend

limiting alcohol and caffeine before bed so caffeine is a stimulant it's going to keep

you awake and alcohol while some people find that it makes them drowsy and drift off really quickly

we tend to wake up in the middle of the night in the middle of a sleep cycle after consuming

alcohol in the evening so it can actually reduce your sleep quality so just a note on those

um if you're going to have wine or an alcoholic beverage maybe have it earlier in the evening

and that way you have some time to process it before you go to bed so a few easy bedtime snacks

to consider so a banana with nut butter you're getting tryptophan you're getting carbs vitamin

b6 magnesium potassium a little bit of protein and healthy fat so your blood sugar stays stable

and it's super convenient and then plain yogurt or milk if you prefer with a little bit of honey

so that's you're getting protein carbs you're getting a little potassium magnesium um calcium

of course but you're also getting a little bit of tryptophan as well from both the milk and

the honey so definitely a really that old wives tale about having a glass of warm milk if you

can't sleep it's actually science so something to consider not necessarily something we usually

think of as a bedtime snack but that can work really really well would be rolled oats um again

because you're getting those complex carbs you're gonna get some tryptophan in there as well as some

vitamin b6 in the oats so that's a great pre-bed mini meal or snack if you need a little more

staying power you can make it with milk or you could do a spoonful of your favorite nut or seed

butter on top to give it a little extra protein little healthy fat so it will digest more slowly

so your blood sugar stays stable overnight it also tastes really nice another great one

a hummus and you know sliced veggies or some whole grain crackers or on a slice of whole grain toast

because you're getting the tryptophan from the chickpeas you're getting a tiny bit of protein

as well as some healthy fats to stabilize your blood sugar another one that is super simple um

a hard-boiled egg because you're gonna get protein you're gonna get fat you're also gonna get some

tryptophan in there so and the melatonin which is really helpful for supporting restful sleep

so i know i just shared some info with you about important foods and nutrients to support

restful sleep talked about some easy snack options but know that if you are struggling

with sleep to the point where it is impacting your day-to-day functioning and your well-being

please reach out to your doctor and talk about a sleep routine that will actually work for you

you don't have to struggle alone so i hope you found this helpful

i'm jess cording dietitian health coach and author so happy you could join me today sweet dreams