6 Dinners That Won’t Let You Sleep

Dinners: What you eat and drink at night greatly influences your rest. We help you discover if the reason why you have trouble falling asleep or what makes you wake up several times at dawn is the dinner the night before.

It has undoubtedly happened to you that you do not get a good night’s sleep after a caloric and too heavy dinner in a night celebration.

A study moves out at the University of Pennsylvania (USA) to ensure that those who take more calories sleep less than usual (5 to 6 hours). Simultaneously, people who follow a varied and light diet have a healthier sleep and better rest.

And what are unsuitable dinners? Take note of some combinations that you should only take occasionally:

1. Eggs and Chips

You already know that fried foods are rich in fat. And that excess can cause heavy digestion and, probably, heartburn. With this panorama, you will indeed not sleep well. Also, the excess energy that frying at night will make you gain weight.

If you want to have an egg, do it in an omelet or on the grill, and instead of potatoes, accompany it with some roasted vegetables.

2. Beef Steak With Salad Dinners

In this case, sleep will be interrupted by excess protein and saturated fat from meat that requires longer digestion. Lettuce, meanwhile, is healthy, but some people find it bloated.

It would help if you changed this dish for a more suitable one: a grilled chicken breast with lamb’s lettuce, papaya, and sprouts.

3. Assorted Sausages Dinners

Sausages should be consumed in moderation, about 50 g (two slices of Serrano ham) at most once or double a week since they are foods with a lot of saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, and calories. Therefore, a dinner based only on sausages will not only hinder your digestion and your sleep, but it will not benefit your health at all.

If you opt for them, at least don’t eat them alone, but as one more ingredient in a vegetable dish. For example, make a vegetable salad with brown rice and ham.

4. Spaghetti With Spicy Tomato Sauce

Although carbohydrates are easily digestible nutrients, having a plate of pasta for dinner (or rice, potato, etc.) is not a good idea to keep weight at bay. Taking them as the main ingredient at dinner implies too much energy that you do not need at that time, and the excess carbohydrates your body will accumulate in the form of triglycerides in fat tissue.

On the other hand, hot spices have a stimulating effect because they activate the metabolism and increase body temperature. Therefore, after a “spicy” dinner, it is more difficult to fall asleep. Instead, we suggest a salad of vegetables and whole-grain macaroni with an oregano and fennel vinaigrette to facilitate your digestion.

5. Celery Soup With Leeks and Battered Sardines

The soups and creams of vegetables are satiating, promote digestion, and eat light, but you bring plenty of fluids. If you also drink a lot, you will need to go to the bathroom at night. To avoid this, do not include very diuretic foods (celery, onion, or asparagus) and allow at least two hours before going to bed.

On the other hand, sardines are a great source of omega 3s but fried, they have a lot of fat, so grill them with a vegetable wok.

6. Dessert Sweets Dinners

Discard industrial cakes and pastries, as they are rich in saturated fats, refined flours, and sugars and harm your sleep. Remember that fast-absorbing simple carbohydrates (sugars) do not suit you at night: you accumulate them in the form of fat.

Also, discard chocolate, since it has caffeine, mostly black, so if you take it shortly before going to bed, and you are sensitive to this stimulant, you may find it difficult to sleep. Chocolate contains other motivations, such as theobromine, which also makes it difficult to sleep.

If you want a sweet dessert, prepare an apple compote with cinnamon, for example.

Foods and Drinks to Avoid at Night

Well, because they are rich in fat, produce gases or are stimulating, these foods do not suit you at dinner time.

• Cured cheeses. They are excessively fatty. And its tyramine content can cause migraines in sensitive people.
• Pre-cooked food. Fats, refined flours, and additives are part of them. They are not the best option for insomniacs.
• Pulses. They are very healthy but save them for noon for better digestion.
• Cruciferous. They are flatulent and will make you wake up with digestive discomfort. Better in cream with fennel.
• Coffee. Some say that it does not affect you, but in reality, taking it at this time will make you have a shorter and lower quality sleep.
• Alcoholic beverages. Alcohol makes you tired but prevents you from entering the deep sleep phases, so rest is not restorative.