           
|
|
Your privacy is a PRIMARY consideration of AskDrSears.com. Your
e-mail address is used ONLY by AskDrSears.com for the purpose of
announcing news, events and special offers available only
AskDrSears.com registered users.
Balboa Sling
Dr. Sears Original Baby Sling, by Balboa Baby Introductory Special $10.00 off exp 09/30/08 Click here to order. *Not valid in conjuction with any other offers.
Your privacy is a PRIMARY consideration of AskDrSears.com. Your e-mail address is used ONLY by AskDrSears.com for the purpose of announcing news, events and special offers available only AskDrSears.com registered users. FOODS FOR SLEEP
Topics included in this section are: Foods that Help you SleepSnooze Foods Best Bedtime Snacks Caffeine and Kids Best Dinners for Sleep Foods that Keep you Awake What you eat affects how you sleep. One of the keys to a restful night's sleep is to get your brain calmed rather than revved up. Some foods contribute to restful sleep; other foods keep you awake. We call them sleepers and wakers. Sleepers are tryptophan-containing foods, because tryptophan is the amino acid that the body uses to make serotonin, the neurotransmitter that slows down nerve traffic so your brain isn't so busy. Wakers are foods that stimulate neurochemicals that perk up the brain. Tryptophan is a precursor of the sleep-inducing substances serotonin and melatonin. This means tryptophan is the raw material that the brain uses to build these relaxing neurotransmitters. Making more tryptophan available, either by eating foods that contain this substance or by seeing to it that more tryptophan gets to the brain, will help to make you sleepy. On the other hand, nutrients that make tryptophan less available can disturb sleep. Eating carbohydrates with tryptophan-containing foods makes this calming amino acid more available to the brain. A high carbohydrate meal stimulates the release of insulin, which helps clear from the bloodstream those amino acids that compete with tryptophan, allowing more of this natural sleep-inducing amino acid to enter the brain and manufacture sleep- inducing substances, such as serotonin and melatonin. Eating a high-protein meal without accompanying carbohydrates may keep you awake, since protein-rich foods also contain the amino acid, tyrosine, which perks up the brain. To understand how tryptophan and carbohydrates work together to relax you, picture the various amino acids from protein foods as passengers on a bus. A busload containing tryptophan and tyrosine arrives at the brain cells. If more tyrosine "passengers" get off the bus and enter the brain cells, neuroactivity will rev up. If more tryptophan amino acids get off the bus, the brain will calm down. Along comes some insulin which has been stalking carbohydrates in the bloodstream. Insulin keeps the tyrosine amino acids on the bus, allowing the brain-calming tryptophan effect to be higher than the effect of the brain-revving tyrosine. You can take advantage of this biochemical quirk by choosing protein or carbohydrate-rich meals, depending on whether you want to perk up or slow down your brain. For students and working adults, high protein, medium-carbohydrate meals are best eaten for breakfast and lunch. For dinner and bedtime snacks, eat a meal or snack that is high in complex carbohydrates, with a small amount of protein that contains just enough tryptophan to relax the brain. An all- carbohydrate snack, especially one high in junk sugars, is less likely to help you sleep. You'll miss out on the sleep-inducing effects of tryptophan, and you may set off the roller-coaster effect of plummeting blood sugar followed by the release of stress hormones that will keep you awake. The best bedtime snack is one that has both complex carbohydrates and protein, and perhaps some calcium. Calcium helps the brain use the tryptophan to manufacture melatonin. This explains why dairy products, which contain both tryptophan and calcium, are one of the top sleep-inducing foods. These are foods high in the sleep-inducing amino acid tryptophan: Foods that are high in carbohydrates and calcium, and medium-to-low in protein also make ideal sleep-inducing bedtime snacks. Some examples: Meals that are high in carbohydrates and low-to-medium in protein will help you relax in the evening and set you up for a good night's sleep. Try the following "dinners for sleep": Lighter meals are more likely to give you a restful night's sleep. High-fat meals and large servings prolong the work your digestive system needs to do, and all the gas production and rumblings may keep you awake. Some people find that highly-seasoned foods (e.g., hot peppers and garlic) interfere with sleep, especially if you suffer from heartburn. (See gastroesophageal reflux). Going to bed with a full stomach does not, for most people, promote a restful night's sleep. While you may fall asleep faster, all the intestinal work required to digest a big meal is likely to cause frequent waking and a poorer quality of sleep. Eat your evening meal early. Heed the sleep wisdom: "Don't dine after nine." Caffeine-containing foods top the list of foods that wake you up. Here's why: Know your caffeine quota. Some persons are more caffeine-sensitive than others. Many adults can take up to 250 milligrams of caffeine a day (the average amount in 21/2 cups of coffee) and experience no sleep problems. Others get jitters after one cola. Time your caffeine boost. For most people, the effects of caffeine wear off within six hours, so coffee in the morning will usually not interfere with sleep in the evening. Caffeine-containing beverages at lunch may not affect your sleep, but coffee, tea, or cola in the evening is likely to keep you awake.
Know what foods contain the most caffeine. As you can see from the chart, coffee, colas, and tea rank highest in caffeine content.
Contrary to what we are led to believe, chocolate is not high in caffeine. Two chocolate chip cookies may contain less than 5 milligrams of caffeine, a packet of cocoa mix contains 5 milligrams, and one chocolate candy bar contains around 10 milligrams. In fact, many people find chocolate desserts that also contain dairy products to actually be a sleep inducer because of the combination of tryptophan and carbohydrates. To get the taste of tea with less of a caffeine jolt, recycle the tea bag. Discard the first cup of tea made from the tea bag, which contains the most caffeine, and make another cup. Also, don't squeeze the tea out of the tea bag, as these drops of tea contain more caffeine. Try grain-based hot beverages and caffeine-free herbal teas as alternatives to coffee and tea. Some over-the-counter cold and headache remedies are high in caffeine. Check the label or ask the pharmacist, especially if you are a caffeine-sensitive person.
|
AskDrSears.com is intended to help parents become better informed consumers of health care. The information presented in this site gives general advice on parenting and health care. Always consult your doctor for your individual needs.
© Copyright 2006 AskDrSears.com. All Rights Reserved.