The cereal of crunchy flakes and almonds, called Sweet Dreams, comes with a description that reads like a box of herbal tea, touting notes of lavender and chamomile, as well as vitamins and minerals intended to support your body's production of the sleep hormone melatonin.
Cereal is Fast and Easy, but it May Cause Insomnia
You may want to avoid eating cereal before sleeping. Even if you're not, the quick changes in blood sugar don't contribute to the relaxed state your body requires for sleep.
The company behind Grape Nuts has a new cereal designed to be eaten before bed. Post's "Sweet Dreams" is designed to stoke your body's melatonin production. It's the latest new food or beverage product designed to help you sleep.
It provides an excellent breakfast and an ideal snack any time of the day, including bedtime. However, balance is the key, and you can have too much of a good thing. Weetabix is fortified with certain vitamins and minerals and if eaten to excess, then you could be taking in too much of these nutrients.
High-Sugar Cereals
"Eating cereal containing high amounts of added sugar right before bed can cause a spike in your blood sugar and increase insulin levels, causing you to wake up feeling hungry," says Smith. "Cereal can be a suitable snack prior to bedtime, but choose high-fiber, lower-sugar options," adds Smith.
Tryptophan triggers the brain's sleep process: Tryptophan is an amino acid known to promote sleep. View Source within the brain. Turkey contains high levels of tryptophan, so it is famously blamed for sleepiness after Thanksgiving dinner. Other foods with tryptophan include milk, bananas, oats, and chocolate.
For many people, the ideal nighttime snack may consist of a simple 150-calorie option that is high in nutrients. One study showed that consuming a low-calorie carbohydrate or protein. View Source snack 30 minutes before sleep helped boost metabolism in the morning.
According to Lauren Popeck, RD, a dietitian at Orlando Health, Greek yogurt is perfect for bedtime, because it contains the sleep-inducing chemical tryptophan. And because it's such a rich source of protein, Greek yogurt can also help you avoid that same glucose spike.
“If you are hungry, you should eat something, regardless of the time of day,” says Aimee Takamura, registered dietitian and director of wellness and sustainability at Restaurant Associates. “The act of eating late at night does not affect metabolism or lead to many of the adverse effects you may have heard of.
Sweet Dreams is the first ready-to-eat cereal designed for fostering healthy nighttime habits. It's made with sleep-boosting ingredients that support melatonin production, and claims to help you relax before bedtime while providing you with a nourishing snack or meal.
Experts recommend waiting at least three hours after you've eaten to go to bed. This allows your body time to digest your food so you're not up at night with an upset stomach, indigestion, or acid reflux. And it helps you stay asleep.
A new study says milk and cereal in the morning can help avoid overeating the rest of the day. A new study says milk when consumed with breakfast cereal may provide benefits for those managing diabetes. A well-balanced breakfast of carbohydrates, protein and fats is considered key to starting the day.
Lying down with a full stomach too soon after a meal can cause gastrointestinal discomfort and may worsen symptoms of heartburn, indigestion, or gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) — hardly a recipe for restful sleep.
Many cases of tiredness are due to stress, not enough sleep, poor diet and other lifestyle factors. Try these self-help tips to restore your energy levels. If you feel you're suffering from fatigue, which is an overwhelming tiredness that isn't relieved by rest and sleep, you may have an underlying medical condition.
Research also indicates that a lack of sleep can also alter appetite-regulating hormones4 (ghrelin which stimulates appetite and leptin, which reduces it) as well as metabolism and brain function5. This causes cravings for high calorie, high sugar, high fat and salty snacks in an attempt to boost energy levels.
Eggs and fish are higher melatonin-containing food groups in animal foods, whereas in plant foods, nuts are with the highest content of melatonin. Some kinds of mushrooms, cereals and germinated legumes or seeds are also good dietary sources of melatonin.
Weet-Bix is a good source of B vitamins including B1 (thiamin), B2 (riboflavin) and B3 (niacin) for energy, as part of a balanced diet. Weet-Bix is high in folate! This B vitamin helps support healthy blood cells and immune system, fights fatigue and maintains a healthy mind, in combination with a balanced diet.
Both calcium and carbohydrate-rich foods promote the effects of tryptophan, a sleep-promoting amino acid. Top picks for sleep are apples with peanut butter, cheese and crackers or cereal and milk.