Foods to help you sleep

Sleep can boost your memory, help you maintain a healthy weight and even make you live longer, so it’s worth making sure you get your recommended eight hours of shut-eye a night. But just how do you go about doing it? If you’ve tried the obvious - cutting out caffeine and alcohol, making your bedroom cosy and relaxing, avoiding TV before bed - but you’re still struggling to doze off, then it’s time to eat your way to refreshing sleep!

Picking foods that promote rest and encourage sleep is a great way to make sure you get all forty winks, and we’ve chosen the five best foods that will help you on your way to dreamland. Don’t forget that timing is important - you should eat your slumber snacks one to two hours before bedtime, in order to get the heaviest part of digestion over with before you go to sleep. 

Oatmeal

Think porridge is just for breakfast? Think again! A bowl of this carb-rich snack will release serotonin into your body, which is a feel-good hormone that should lower stress and keep you feeling calm - perfect for an evening snack. Plus, oatmeal is a slower digesting source of carbohydrates, so you can forget about waking up in the night with crashing blood sugar levels. 

Warm milk

It turns out your mum does know best! A glass of warm milk before bed should help you drift off faster, because it contains tryptophan amino acid which, many argue, makes you feel sleepy. Others claim that the psychological effect of any hot beverage is to make you feel sleepy, especially when combined with carbohydrate-rich food, like a tasty bowl of warm oatmeal. Whether it’s down to physiology or psychology, if it works we’re game to give it a go.

Peanut butter

Peanuts are rich in niacin which helps to increase the release of that feel-good hormone, serotonin. Peanut butter, whilst nutritionally sound, is also high in calories and fat so make sure to keep your serving size under control. A little spread on a slice of toast should make a perfect supper time treat.

Bananas

Bananas are a dream-inducing food as they include potassium and magnesium, which are natural muscle relaxants, ideal for lulling yourself to sleep. On top of that, bananas are also rich in tryptophan which is converted into the serotonin that calms and induces sleep. If bananas aren’t really your thing, or you just fancy a change, why not turn them into a loaf of yummy banana bread or a tasty banana cake? Relax with a slice and a glass of warm milk as a cosy evening snack.

Cottage cheese

Cottage cheese is packed with slow-digesting protein that will feed your muscle tissues with amino acids for hours. Plus it’s got - yep, you guessed it! - tryptophan which facilitates serotonin production. Rummage in your biscuit tin for a few whole-wheat crackers or savoury biscuits and add a few spoonfuls of cottage cheese for a satisfying, slumber-inducing supper. 

Mix and match your evening snacks during the week, and you’ll be eating your way to a good night’s sleep in no time. Sweet dreams!