Latest research upon the matter shows that fibers can help overcome insomnia. It seems that there is a natural way to combat the sleeping disorder, after all. These latest findings placed foods high in fiber content next to warm milk, chamomile tea, bananas, cherries and other soothing foods that can actually help you get a good night’s sleep.
Fibers are a part of a healthy lifestyle
You cannot just eat fiber-packed food and expect to snooze off the moment your head touches the pillow. There is more to it than just eating healthy, one also needs an overall healthy lifestyle. Fibers can overcome insomnia, but not by themselves.
Exercising is a crucial part in the fight against the number one sleeping disorder that affects Americans. Only 20 minutes of daily exercise can go a long way when it comes to a good night’s rest. The combination of exercising during the day and eating foods high in fiber content for dinner could reduce the time needed to fall asleep from 20-30 minutes to just over 10 minutes.
Bear in mind the fact that the physical exercise must be made during the day, or late afternoon. If you engage in physical activity before bed, the endorphins released as a result of the effort will keep you wide awake.
What should we eat, exactly?
Apart from the now canonical glass of warm milk, doctors recommend foods such as white beans, corn, oat, rice, wheat, black beans, fava beans, blueberries, raspberries, currants, boysenberries, strawberries, gooseberries, blackberries, elderberries, quinoa, peas, spinach, pinon nuts, Hubbard squash, acorn squash, figs, breadfruit, and yogurt.
All of these are natural foods that are high in fiber and could sooth the sleep, but some of them are pretty heavy on the stomach (such as the fava beans) and should be eaten at least 3 hours before going to bed.
What shouldn’t we eat?
Sweet and greasy food are not recommended because as the body breaks it down it produces a lot of energy that will keep the neurons firing. On the list of foods that need to be mentioned are chocolate, desserts that have a high amount of sugar in their composition, processed foods of any sort, especially fast food which is rich in both sugar and fats, carbonated drinks, coffee, deep fried foods, and pizza.
Even though it has been proven that fibers can help overcome insomnia, attention must be paid to the dietary plan as a whole, because fibers may be an ally, but they need to be associated with the right foods and a healthy lifestyle. Eating a granola before going to bed is not enough.
Image source: www.wikimedia.org
