Tossing and turning, difficult to sleep; Wake up in the middle of the night and can no longer sleep. Sleepy during the day, fidgety…
I believe people who have experienced insomnia all feel the same pain.
When it comes to insomnia, the most common causes are nothing more than living habits, physical condition, work pressure, etc., but sometimes, people ignore some important causes, namely diet.
Don’t [go on a diet] lose weight
The [low carbohydrate diet], which does not eat staple food, is very popular, but this diet can easily lead to insomnia.
The reason why hunger is easy will not be mentioned. The key may also be related to malnutrition and the impact on the normal function of the brain.
There are many neurotransmitters in the human body that are transformed from amino acids. Studies have shown that [5-hydroxytryptamine] deficiency is closely related to insomnia. 5-hydroxytryptamine is a neurotransmitter beneficial to peace of mind and can be transformed from tryptophan in protein. It is easy to lack without eating staple food.
[-Aminobutyric acid] is a neurotransmitter that inhibits the excitation of the nervous system and helps sleep. Food foods contain-Aminobutyric acid, which will be insufficient if you don’t eat staple foods.
In addition, when dieting to lose weight, the body’s gluconeogenesis effect is strengthened. Due to changes in metabolic pathways, the consumption of B vitamins will increase. If you do not eat staple food, vitamin B6 is insufficient, which will disrupt the process of amino acid synthesis of neurotransmitters.
What should I do?
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During weight loss, you can eat less staple food, but don’t eat not a bite.
It is suggested that women with less physical activity should eat at least 3 ounces of grain (1 ounce of grain is equivalent to about half a bowl of rice) every day during weight loss. If there is exercise, the amount should be increased to 4 ~ 5 ounces.
At night, you can drink a small bowl of lily millet gruel, or eat two or three red dates, and supplement a little carbohydrate to help you sleep.
- Change at least half of white rice, white steamed bread and white bread into miscellaneous grains and beans. Because the content of B vitamins in refined white rice foods and sweets is extremely low, while the content of whole grain miscellaneous grains is several times that of refined white rice.
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Steamed potatoes, baked sweet potatoes and other unfried potato foods are also one of the good sources of B vitamins.
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It is also helpful not to eat sweets or drink sugary drinks.
Supplement calcium, magnesium and other trace elements
A study published in the European Journal of Neurology shows that calcium levels in the body increase during deep sleep (REM). Researchers concluded that calcium deficiency may lead to lack or absence of deep sleep.
Other studies have found that calcium can help the brain use tryptophan to produce melatonin, which is an important hormone related to sleep rhythm. Lack of melatonin will affect sleep.
Another study by the North Dakota Human Nutrition Research Center found that magnesium deficiency can cause sleep disorders, while a diet high in magnesium and low in aluminum can make adult women with sleep disorders get deep sleep and are not easy to wake up halfway.
In life, people who do not like to drink milk, eat less vegetables, do not touch bean products, eat more meat and have heavy tastes often have insufficient intake of calcium and magnesium.
What should I do?
- Eat more than 500 grams (1 kg) of vegetables every day, Especially for dinner, you should eat 200 grams of blanched, mixed or boiled green leafy vegetables. Supplement magnesium and calcium. Guarantee 300 grams of dairy products (including milk and yogurt) every day. Or 200 grams of dairy products plus 150 grams of brine tofu. They are crucial to a sufficient supply of calcium, and brine tofu is also a good source of magnesium. Less oil and salt, fish and meat are not too much. Excessive oil will reduce the absorption rate of calcium, while excessive salt and protein will promote the excretion of calcium in urine, exacerbating the problem of calcium deficiency.
3. Don’t eat dinner too late, too much, too greasy
Eating too much, too late and too greasy before going to bed will cause many adverse effects on the body:
- The feeling of fullness caused by eating too much will affect sleep and make it difficult to fall asleep. Lying down after eating is not conducive to food emptying and affects digestion. Eat too greasy, calories are too high, the body is in a low metabolic state during sleep, calories cannot be consumed, it is easy to convert into fat stored under the skin, leading to obesity. For some people, eating late at night is more likely to be hungry the next morning.
In short, eating too much, too late and too greasy dinner is easy to make people sleep poorly.
What should I do?
- Dinner is at least 3 hours away from sleep, Less oil, less spicy, less salt. The amount of dinner should not be too small, based on not feeling hungry before going to bed (how much to eat, or have to be observed and groped by everyone). If you sleep late at night and are easily hungry, it is recommended to drink a cup of soya-bean milk or milk at 9 ~ 10 o’clock, if not enough, you can add some fruit. These foods are full and easy to digest, and will not hinder sleep.
Step 4 Avoid caffeine and alcohol
Caffeine has an exciting effect. Coffee and strong tea contain a lot of caffeine. Chocolate, cola, cocoa powder and other food and drinks also contain caffeine.
Many people think that drinking some wine will fall asleep quickly, but in fact alcohol will seriously reduce sleep quality, reduce deep sleep time and increase the number of nights awakened.
Improvement measures
- People who don’t sleep well should reduce caffeine intake, preferably not drinking coffee, cocoa and strong tea after lunch. In addition, don’t drink too much alcohol to help them fall asleep. On the basis of adjusting their diet, exercising for half an hour a day can also help improve insomnia.