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We lose sleep over so many things, so the last thing we need is our late-night dining decisions working against us.

Everyone likes a little nighttime nosh, but what you decide to nibble on can drastically affect how well you sleep. While some foods help your slumber, others (fatty or greasy options) can wreak havoc on your rest.

If you're looking for a peaceful night, here are the 10 foods you should avoid right before bed.
1. Ice Cream
A bowl of ice cream might be the most comforting bad-breakup bed accompaniment, but there's a limit to its soothing properties.

For starters, ice cream is loaded with fat, so you're not going to give your body a chance to burn any of it before bed, and then all of the sugar is going to pump your body full of energy right before you hit the hay, so you'll be sending your body divergent messages. On top of that, the sugar just gets stored and turned to fat, too, so this is a lose-lose situation all around.

It's also been discovered that eating high-sugar foods before bed causes nightmares, so while the taste might be calming, the results are unnerving.
2.Celery
Seeing celery on this list might surprise you, but there's a simple reason for it: celery is a natural diuretic. What that means is it's going to make you pee a bit more than usual.

Diuretics elevate the rate of urination because they push water through the system. So that means that if you're dipping into too much celery right before bed, your body might wake you out of your slumber for a pee break.

Vegetables are some of the most nutrient-rich foods you can give your body, but avoid ones like celery for the sake of uninterrupted sleep.
3. Pasta
Pasta is a fast and easy fix for those craving a quick bite before bed, but it's not your ideal nighttime snack.

Pastas are straight carbohydrates, and if you're going to bed right after eating, that's all going to turn into fat. On top of that, the things added to pasta -- oils, cheeses and heavy cream or tomato sauces -- will only add to the crowd in your love handles.

Also, most pasta has a high glycemic index, which means it's more likely to play with your blood-sugar levels, delay sleep and wake you up at night.
4. Pizza
If you want to give your stomach a good workout before bed, feed it some greasy, salty pizza. Your stomach, like the rest of your body, would love to relax when most of the other organs are chilling, too, but pizza isn't exactly a light meal. Your tummy will have to get busy.

The layer of tomato sauce has high levels of acidity, which is just another catalyst for acid reflux, but in general, fatty and greasy toppings -- especially high-fat meats and cheeses -- do a good enough job of their own on stirring up heartburn. That's not the wakeup call you want at night. If you're going to do it, be nice to your stomach and check out these nutritional pizza toppings.

One slice isn't the end of the world, but when's the last time you stopped at one slice?

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More From AskMen.com:
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9 Bad Eating Habits to Avoid Metabolism Myths Top 10: Gluten-Free Diet (Foods to Avoid) Top Foods for Men
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5. Candy Bars
If nightmares about the monster in the closet or the gremlins under the bed disturb your sleep, you might want to avoid candy bars.

One of the easiest -- and worst -- ways of breaking out of a deep slumber is from a nightmare that's very real to us. A recent study has shown that 7 out of 10 people who eat junk foods like candy bars before bed are more likely to be prone to nightmares. The hypothesis is that the high levels of sugar create more nightmarish brain waves. Try these junk food substitutes instead.

Cross this late-night snack off your list if you're looking for a peaceful night.
6. Cereal
Mitt Romney loves a good bowl of cold cereal right before bed, but he might want to be careful which one he chooses or he won't get the rest he needs.

Cereals often contain high amounts of refined sugar and are chock-full of carbohydrates. That might set you off on a bit of a spike and crash in your blood sugar levels, which is not the ideal way to put your body at peace before bedtime.

Instead of reaching for sugary cereals, go for healthier cereals. Those that are whole-grain and have low sugar will quench the craving but won't keep you up.
7. Garlic
You might want to avoid garlic before bed if you're sleeping with a partner, but it's best avoided for reasons besides bad breath. Garlic is known as a "hot herb," and, along with spicy food, it tends to have some properties in it that can cause heartburn.

It's known to sometimes have the side effect of upsetting the stomach, so if you have a weak stomach or are vulnerable to acid reflux, the last thing you want to do is light the fire right before you lie down to rest.
8. Dark Chocolate
Who doesn't like to sneak a little nub of chocolate before bed to get that warm feeling inside? Unfortunately, if you're aiming for a good night's sleep, dark chocolate is one of the foods you'd better avoid.

Dark chocolate is a sneaky source of caffeine, which is known to perk you up. Almost all chocolate contains some level of caffeine, and on top of that, it's loaded with stimulants like theobromine, which is known to make your heart race a little bit.

The lone saving grace is white chocolate, which doesn't have theobromine and is usually short on caffeine.
9. Alcohol
There's a general belief that copious amounts of alcohol puts you into a deep daze and produces great sleep, but that's not fully accurate. While alcohol does help you get to sleep, it doesn't lead to long-lasting and refreshing rest.

Alcohol actually interferes with the restorative functions of sleep, often paving the way for shallow sleep and several awakenings throughout the night. On top of that, people who regularly use alcohol to fall asleep develop a dependency on it, which creates a frustrating cycle.

If you're aiming for a deep, peaceful sleep, alcohol is to be avoided.
10. Red Meat
After a big portion of red meat -- be it a nice brisket or a big, juicy steak -- most of us undo the top button on our jeans and give way to the snooze-inducing itis.

The problem is that red meat is loaded with proteins and fats that will keep your body hard at work throughout the night. To achieve a deeper sleep, you ideally want all your systems at peace -- and meat takes longer to digest than any other foods.

Don't avoid red meats altogether, as they have high levels of iron and tryptophan, which helps sleep. Just don't eat it right before bed, or your body will be busy breaking it down all night.

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We lose sleep over so many things, so the last thing we need is our late-night dining decisions working against us. Everyone likes a little nighttime nosh, but what you decide to nibble on can drastically affect how well you sleep. While some foods help your slumber, others (fatty or greasy options) can wreak havoc on your rest.

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17 Foods that Cause Bad Dreams | Eat This Not That

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17 Foods that Cause Bad Dreams | Eat This Not That

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Don't worry! You haven't actually lost all your teeth and showed up to work in your underwear. It was just a bad dream. But if you're sick of being woken up from your peaceful slumber in a cold sweat, look no further than what you noshed on right before putting your head to the pillow.

Yes, there's a chance that scary nightmare was caused by your late night Ben and Jerry's indulgence.

Scholars have written about the correlation between diets and bad dreams, well, basically forever. Hippocrates, who is regarded as the father of medicine, was one of the first to note a connection. And now, more than 2,000 years later, there's finally a study (published in the journal Frontiers in Psychology) that corroborates his notions.

For the study, 396 students at a Canadian university were polled on their diet and dream quality, daily for two weeks. The questions that they answered delved into diet habits, psychological function, overall health, sleep, and dream habits. After sorting through their responses, the researchers were able to drum up a targeted list of foods that cause nightmares. You know, the kinds of dreams that wake you up, mess with your sleep cycle, and ultimately, spike your cortisol levels enough to cause weight gain.

To help you keep the Boogeyman-and excess belly fat-at bay, we dug into the study data to uncover the foods that are most likely to give you nightmares. Kick them to the curb and while you're at it, read up on these 30 Things to Do 30 Minutes Before Bed to Lose Weight get even more out of your nightly slumber!

Sure, dairy contains tryptophan, which serves as a precursor for the sleep-inducing hormone serotonin, but study participants who consumed dairy products (like cheese!) before bed were more likely to report unsavory dreams. Sounds like a great reason to ditch the caloric late night pizza if you ask us.

According to the study, students who ate spicy foods before bed had a hard time falling asleep and staying asleep. They also reported having stressful dreams. The reason: Spicy foods alter the body's temperature, which according to the study, alters dream formations during the REM (rapid eye motion) stage of sleep. That doesn't mean you have to totally ditch the hot sauce and spicy grub, though. Just cut yourself off six hours before you turn in for the night-and be sure to stick to one the Eat This!-approved bottles from our special report, 18 Best and Worst Hot Sauces-Ranked!

The only thing scarier than a killer hangover? The dreams you have the night after you've had a few. Not only can consuming alcohol before bed makes it more difficult to fall into a deep sleep, participants in the study reported nightmares and stressful dreams after knocking back a few.

Get this: In the study, 31 percent of all reported "bizarre dreams" occurred after participants had eaten sugary foods like cookies and cake. While sweet treats may be tempting before bed, you're better off giving into your cravings with one of these 15 Best Low-Sugar Snacks for Weight Loss.

After dairy products, sweets and chocolate were the second most frequently mentioned category of dream-influencing foods, with reports of "bizarre" and "disturbing" dreams being the most common. "Remember that chocolate is high in caffeine (which has been shown to decrease your ability to fall into a deep sleep) and has sugar, so this may not be the best bet before bed," Lauren Kelly, MS, RD, CDN of Kelly Wellness in New York City tells us. Even if you're eating the healthy dark variety, Kelly advises enjoying it as an early afternoon snack instead of a post-dinner dessert. If you have to have some chocolaty goodness after your evening meal, cut your portion size back to see if that helps.

Just because chips don't have sugar or caffeine doesn't mean they're a good before-bed snack. About 12.5 percent of all disturbing dreams in the study were caused by the consumption of "greasy junk food" like chips. That's not the only reason to stay away either. The grease can do a number on your digestive tract, making it hard for you to stay in a restful sleep. Switch to a lighter healthy chip or nibble on something else that's crunchy (like carrot sticks or a small handful of nuts) before bed instead.

We already told you that both the white granular stuff and dairy could bring out the monsters in the closet, so it should come as no surprise that the mix of sugar and milk in hot cocoa can bring you bad dreams. If you crave a soothing warm drink before bed, opt for warm water with lemon or a caffeine-free detox tea. The calming valerian and hop varieties are two of our favorites-just don't forget to hold the milk.

Participants in the study who had pasta or bread before bed reported having upsetting dreams, which is no surprise considering sugar consumption was shown to have the same effect. It's a little-known fact, but carbs actually convert to glucose (a form of sugar) in the body. That said, try to eat your carbs earlier in the day so your body has time to process them before you settle in for sleep. Other carb-slashing options: ditch the top bun on your burger and swap your noodles for spiralized zoodles (a fancy name for zucchini noodles).

Study participants who drank soda, even during the earlier part of the day, reported having nightmares, likely because of the caffeine and sugar content. Need another reason to steer clear of the fizzy stuff? Consider this: many sodas are littered with potentially carcinogenic dyes (like caramel coloring) and other icky additives (like glycerol ester of rosin AKA wood resin).

Some study participants who had greasy foods before bed reported having nightmares. With that in mind, we suggest choosing baked foods over fried whenever possible. Love fries? Make a healthier version by cutting a potato into wedges, tossing them on a baking sheet, and coating them with a touch of olive oil, paprika, garlic powder, and ground pepper. Bake for 45 minutes at 450 degrees. If the spud's carb content still winds up giving you nightmares, try dialing back the serving size. For a healthier way to make a batch of nuggets, check out these 30 Quinoa Recipes for Weight Loss! Yup, that's right; not only are they baked, they're coated with a wholesome ancient grain, too.

Though they're often regarded as the better choice, many bottled juices are just as bad as a can of Coke or Pepsi. "Many people think of [juice] as a healthy option, when really it can have even more sugar than a comparably sized soda," warns Kelly. If you drink juice, only do so early in the day and be sure to dilute it with a little bit of water. Remember, sugar lures the boogieman out. For more ways to cut back on your intake of the sweet stuff, don't miss these 30 Easy Ways to Stop Eating So Much Sugar.

In the study, sweet foods were shown to cause scary dreams. But not all sugar comes from obvious sources like donuts and milkshakes. To scare off the Boogyman, Kelly says to be careful to avoid "hidden sources of sugar like ketchup and salad dressings." Not sure which bottles to ban from your cabinet? Don't miss our report, 16 Salad Dressings Worse Than Chocolate Syrup to discover which options are the worst for your waistline and slumber.

We get it: Late night TV and Ben & Jerry's go together like, well, late night TV and Ben & Jerry's; they're the perfect match. But due to their sugar content and dairy base, ice cream and even some healthy-looking Greek yogurt varieties can give you nightmares. If you're craving something creamy, look for a non-dairy, low sugar option instead. Most of these 20 Dairy-Free Frozen Desserts fit the bill.

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17 Foods that Cause Bad Dreams | Eat This Not That

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Don't worry! You haven't actually lost all your teeth and showed up to work in your underwear. It was just a bad dream. But if you're sick of being woken up from your peaceful slumber in a cold sweat, look no further than what you noshed on right before putting your head to the pillow.

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How to Avoid Nightmares and Get More Restful Sleep

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How to Avoid Nightmares and Get More Restful Sleep

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Teeth falling out? Lost in the wilderness alone? Being chased but can't scream? Most of us can remember at least one such dream for its vividness, resulting visceral fear and lingering discomfort.

The mind's reel of midnight movies never ceases to amaze, and many of these dreams can be off-putting if not downright disturbing. From feeling all too real to playing on our deepest fears, bad dreams can also make it harder to get back to sleep and lead to bedtime anxiety for children as well as adults.

In the realm of dreams and nightmares, there remains more mystery than fact. It's an area of neuroscience and psychology that's hard to study, since each of us experiences a unique dream world that's inherently subjective and hard to document with reliability.

While a few hypotheses exist, little is confirmed about why we dream, what causes specific dreams, or how it all works. However, there are some interesting theories on nightmares and recent research that offers insight and potential ways to minimize their occurrence and impact. Read on to see what might influence dreams and current opinions on how to cope with the bad ones.

What Is a Nightmare?

Nightmares are defined as dreams that bring out strong feelings of fear, terror, distress or anxiety. They feel more vivid or intense than a bad dream, and nightmares are often differentiated from dreams when they cause the sleeper to actually wake up and experience intense feelings upon waking. People who awake during a nightmare are likely to remember the details of it.

While you are snoozing, your brain is pretty busy during certain times of the night. During Rapid Eye Movement sleep, brain waves exhibit activity fairly similar to waking, and your brain is consuming as much if not more energy than when you're awake. Your eyes move rapidly (hence the name), but your muscles are in a state of paralysis. This temporary paralysis is a good thing, because during REM sleep your brain is still firing off commands in the motor cortex as you move around your dream world.

Nightmares typically occur during the REM phases of rest, showing up in the later half of your sleep. Little is known about why we dream in general, but popular theories range from managing subconscious thoughts, to sorting out memories and learned information, to purely random chemical signals. There also isn't much information on exactly why dreams sometimes turn out to be nightmares, but it's believed that some daytime factors can play an influential role.

Both children and adults experience nightmares and bad dreams, even though they are primarily associated with childhood. It's estimated that 10-50% of three to six year olds experience nightmares that affect their sleep, with over 80% of seven to nine year olds occasionally experiencing bad dreams.

While children and teens may have more frequent nightmares, adults can and do still have them as well. A literature review found that 85% of adults report at least one nightmare the previous year, 8-29% have monthly nightmares, and 2-6% report weekly nightmares. Older adults are 20-50% less likely to have nightmares compared to younger adults.

Behind the Scenes: The Factors That Influence Dream Content

What was your last bad dream about? Despite our unique lives and experiences, if you asked a group of people this question, you'd likely see a few common themes. In fact, research shows we tend to share quite a bit of subject matter in nightmares.

A 2014 University of Montreal study, analyzed 253 nightmares and 431 bad dreams. They found that physical aggression was the most prevalent theme in nightmares, along with death, health and threats. Men's nightmares were more likely to involve themes of natural disasters and war, while women showed higher frequency of interpersonal conflicts. While fear was a common emotion evoked by nightmares, a significant portion caused sadness, confusion, fear or disgust as well.

Similar themes were found in a previous German study, which identified the five most common nightmare themes as falling, being chased, being paralyzed, being late and death of family or friends.

There's no direct proof or consensus to exactly what causes nightmares or why we have them, but things like our relationships, daytime activities, certain medications and traumatic events all have important links.

Your Experiences

For most people, dreams tend to incorporate aspects of our waking lives in both literal and abstract ways. For example, you dreams may include things like studying, test taking, a problem you're dealing with, working, family or a repetitive action you do during the day. Negative things like stress, fear, worry, arguments and other aspects of our days could also show up in nightmares.

The most common timeframes for dreams to incorporate episodic events and experiences is after one to two days or five to seven days. Dreams also commonly involve past autobiographical experiences, our personal experiences and long-term memories of the self. Research shows these memories are typically experienced selectively and in a fragmented fashion

Anxiety and Stress

Stress and anxiety can come in many forms, from temporary everyday things like moving to a new place, changing roles at school or work, or failing at a task, to more major things like divorce, losing a family member, trauma, or anxiety disorders. Being stressed and feeling anxiety is associated with poor sleep in general, and both may also trigger a nightmare.

Anxiety regarding performance is one a common theme you may have recognized in your own dreams. For example, about 15% of German athletes in one study reported distressing dreams before a big event, most often involving athletic failure. Many students also experience bad dreams related to impending tests or finals, sometimes even years after they've finished school.

Media

The idea that scary movies, thrilling or suspenseful shows or even fear-inducing news broadcasts cause bad dreams is often expressed anecdotally. While difficult to study, many of us can recall a time where visual imagery and situations from media popped up in dream content. Scary movies can also cause stress and anxiety for some people (setting the stage for distressing dreams).

An older study of college students found that 90% could recall a frightening TV, movies or other media experience, and half said it had affected their sleep or eating habits in childhood or adolescence. More surprising is that about one-fourth of the students said they still experienced some residual anxiety. Blood, injury, disturbing sounds, and distorted images were the most prevalent types of phobia-inducing stimuli the researchers identified.

Depression

Severe depression and a negative self attitude were associated with higher incidence of nightmares in a recent large Finnish study. Depression actually proved to be the strongest predictor in their research, with 28% of sufferers reporting frequent nightmares compared to the sample average of 4%.

Personality

One study found adults with personality traits like distrustfulness, alienation, and emotional estrangement were more likely to experience chronic nightmares. Long-time dream researcher Ernest Hartmann proposes that people who have thinner personality boundaries and higher creativity may be more susceptible to nightmares.

Another interesting association is political ideology. A study of college students found that the conservative participants reported more nightmares and more fearful content than liberals, while the liberals recalled more dreams overall.

Environment

Sleep research has documented that temperature and comfort can affect sleep quality, and environment may have some impact on dream content as well. Temperatures that are too cold or too hot can lead less restful sleep and more awakenings (meaning more remembered dreams), as can pain.

Scent may also play a role. A German study released the scent of rotten eggs or roses into the rooms of sleepers after they entered REM sleep. Upon being awakened, people smelling roses reported more positive dream content while those smelling rotten eggs reported more negative content.

Traumatic Experiences

Recurring or more frequent nightmares have been linked with traumatic experiences, including events like relationship violence and surviving natural disasters, and it's a defining characteristic of posttraumatic stress disorder.

Those with PTSD experience nightmares much more frequently, with research estimating 52% to 96% experience them often, compared to around 3% of the general population. The National Center for PTSD says that nightmares following trauma tend to incorporate similar elements or themes as well as replays of the event.

Medications and Drugs

Certain types of medications, particularly those that influence neurotransmitters may influence nightmare frequency. These include antidepressants, narcotics, and barbiturates, as well as withdraw from other drugs that affect REM sleep. If nightmares start after medication changes, bring it up with your physician.

According to the National Institutes of Health's Medline website, nightmares may also be associated with alcohol consumption and withdraw or recreational drug use and cessation.

Eating Before Bed

Snacking too close to bed can cause indigestion, and it may also influence your metabolism and dreams. One study linked junk food with nightmares, while another found that a spicy meal close to bed disturbs sleep, as summarized in a Lifehacker article.

Other Influential Factors

Sleep Deprivation: Experiencing insomnia and fatigue also increase the chances of frequent nightmares, according to the previously mentioned Finnish study.

Sleep Disorders: People with sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome and other sleep disorders are more likely to experience nightmares.

Migraines: Migraine headaches may be linked with more recurrent dreams and nightmares.

Pain: One study showed 39% of people suffering from burn pain experienced pain in their dreams, which was associated with more nightmares and more intense daytime pain.

Minimizing Nightmares and Brushing Off Bad Dreams

Controlling nightmares remains largely uncharted territory, though there are few different schools of thought when it comes to managing bad dreams. For many people nightmares aren't really a major nuisance, but if they do wake you up more than you'd like or you have trouble settling down afterwards, here are couple of potential ways to go about preventing them or reducing their severity.

Practice Good Sleep Hygiene

It's not always possible to completely prevent bad dreams, but setting the stage for good sleep can help ensure you snooze more soundly and feel better-rested. Sleep hygiene involves ensuring both your habits and sleep environment are ideal for quality rest.

Your sleep space can have some bearing on your resting state. Ideally, bedrooms should be cool, dark and quiet. Temperatures in the 60s to low 70s are considered best. Remove or turn off light sources like TVs, VCRs, and alarm clocks, and consider light blocking shades if you live in an urban area or sleep past sunrise. White noise machines or earplugs can be helpful for drowning out bothersome noise.

In terms of habits, keeping a regular bedtime and waketime throughout the week is a key part of supporting your internal clock, as is daily moderate exercise, daily sunlight exposure and a regular evening relaxation routine.

Caffeine, alcohol and nicotine can all affect sleep in different ways, and are best avoided the hours before bedtime. Keeping bedtime snacks light and avoiding spicy foods or those that cause indigestion is also recommended.

Talk or Write It Out

Some psychologists believe talking about dreams and getting social support to put them in perspective is key to reducing anxiety following nightmares. This might take the form of talking out dreams with a therapist, discussing them with a partner or in a group setting, or via independent journaling.

If you wake up shaken from a nightmare and can't get back to sleep right away, it could be helpful to get out of bed and write the dream down, and even change its course.

Image Rehearsal Therapy is a type of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy that involves recalling the nightmare and then writing out a new, more positive version and rehearsing this new scenario daily to displace the original nightmare theme. IRT is a well-researched type of therapy, and is a treatment recommended by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine for chronic idiopathic nightmares and PTSD-related nightmares.

Deal with Daytime Stressors

Other approaches can focus on routines or working on areas of your life that could be contributing to stress or fear. The American Psychological Association 's 2013 Stress in America poll found that stress was associated with poorer sleep, and that poorer sleep was also associated with higher stress

When you've had a tough day, take a few minutes to de-stress before bed. Try a warm bath, relaxing music, yoga or other techniques to see what helps you most.

Progressive Muscle Relaxation is another method recommended by AASM for nightmares. It involves gradually tensing and relaxing different groups of muscles all over the body to reduce stress and tension. It can be done in a clinical setting, or at home via a guided audio track.

Avoid watching or reading things comprised of common nightmare fodder close to bed. That scary movie, suspenseful book or unsettling news broadcast could wind up in your midnight playlist.

Better choices for winding down if you are looking for more peaceful sleep are lighthearted shows, calming music, coloring/sketching, or neutral reading on subjects like self-improvement or hobbies. Remember, electronics like TVs and tablets steal sleep, so it's best to turn them off at least 30 minutes before bed.

Play Some Video Games

One study of former American and Canadian male soldiers without PTSD found that those who played video games often had less threatening dreams and were less passive in their dreams. Researchers speculate that process of desensitization, fighting and winning associated with video gaming may carry over to the dream world.

However, a follow up study found that these protections may not extend to women. Researchers looked at a group of college students that previously experienced trauma and related dreams. While male high-level gamers who had experienced trauma were less affected by nightmares, female high-level gamers actually had the most difficulty with nightmares. They speculate that the genres of games, whether they are played socially, and whether the player experiences sex-role conflict also factor into gaming's ability to provide nightmare protection.

Get Help If Needed

Sometimes, nightmares can become more than just occasional disruptions, becoming a significant source of sleep anxiety. Nightmare disorder is a clinically recognized sleep disorder, classified by frequent and persistent nightmares that regularly disrupt sleep, cause bedtime anxiety and affect daytime behavior. They can also be a symptom of PTSD, which can have a dramatic effect on quality of life.

If you feel like nightmares are making it difficult to get a good night's sleep often or feel anxiety around falling asleep due to bad dreams, it is worthwhile to discuss it with your doctor and/or a psychologist. They can assess if there are underlying conditions to resolve and prescribe the right treatments and medications when applicable.

Most importantly, don't feel embarrassed to bring the issue up - nightmares aren't childish. They can have a significant impact on your waking life, and social support along with healthy lifestyle habits can play an important role in minimizing their impact.
How often do you experience bad dreams? What seems to help you calm down or what encourages mores positive dreams for you?

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How to Avoid Nightmares and Get More Restful Sleep

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Teeth falling out? Lost in the wilderness alone? Being chased but can't scream? Most of us can remember at least one such dream for its vividness, resulting visceral fear and lingering discomfort. The mind's reel of midnight movies never ceases to amaze, and many of these dreams can be off-putting if not downright disturbing.

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16 Foods That Help You Sleep | Reader's Digest - Reader's Digest

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16 Foods That Help You Sleep | Reader's Digest - Reader's Digest

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Almonds

Sea Wave/Shutterstock Almonds are rich in magnesium, a mineral needed for quality sleep (and for building bones). A study published in the Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine found that when the body's magnesium levels are too low, it makes it harder to stay asleep. Don't miss these other 10 natural tricks for sleeping better without drugs.

Lettuce

Brent Hofacker/Shutterstock A salad with dinner could speed up your bedtime since lettuce contains lactucarium, which has sedative properties and affects the brain similarly to opium. You can also try this brew from the book Stealth Health: Simmer three to four large lettuce leaves in a cup of water for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, add two sprigs of mint, and sip just before you go to bed. Check out these other 13 best tips from sleep doctors.

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Rice

Prasit jamkajornkiat/Shutterstock White rice has a high glycemic index, so eating it will significantly slash the time it takes you to fall asleep, according to an Australian study. In particular, jasmine rice in particular brings on shut-eye faster; research published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that people who ate a meal that included jasmine rice fell asleep faster than when they ate other rice types. Check out these other 11 weird tricks that help you sleep better.

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16 Foods That Help You Sleep | Reader's Digest - Reader's Digest

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Sea Wave/Shutterstock Almonds are rich in magnesium, a mineral needed for quality sleep (and for building bones). A study published in the Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine found that when the body's magnesium levels are too low, it makes it harder to stay asleep. Don't miss these other 10 natural tricks for sleeping better without drugs.

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6 Foods That Can Affect Your Dreams & Sleep

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6 Foods That Can Affect Your Dreams & Sleep

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If you're tossing and turning at night with no clue as to why, consider this: your bedtime snack could be affecting your dreams. Poll friends and you are sure to find plenty of personal anecdotes of being plagued by nightmares after splurging on a late-night steak and half a bottle of wine. It seems clear that digesting something so heavy while you sleep is a recipe for a tummy ache and combining that with alcohol (which suppresses REM sleep) will lead to some memorable 4 a.m. dreams.

But some foods' effects are not so obvious. How do we know what's safe to eat if we are feeling a bit peckish and not ruin our 40 winks? If you go gaga for gouda or muse over muenster, does that mean you are cursed to a night of bad visions? It can be difficult to tell the difference between food facts and folklore when the Internet is filled with advice swearing that certain foods will help you sleep like a baby, and induce lucid dreaming, while others will make you never able to sleep again. But it isn't just the type of food you eat that will affect your REM cycle. Going to bed too full or too hungry will hinder the quality of your sleep as well. If you fall asleep with low blood sugar, it can disrupt your sleep pattern and lead to nightmares, studies say.

The best advice is to eat a light snack if you're hungry and avoid alcohol and stimulants. Some foods can promote better sleep and some disrupt it, so review the list below to see what you need to eat for pleasant dreams.

1. Peanut Butter And Jelly Sandwich (And Sweet Foods)

Looking for a way to fend off low blood sugar and still sleep peacefully? A peanut butter and jelly sandwich might be just what the doctor ordered. This is highly recommended by Dr. Gary Wenk, professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at the Ohio State University and Medical Center, and the author of Your Brain on Food. " Sleep is a very active process and your brain needs a lot of sugar. I actually recommend to people having a peanut butter and jelly sandwich before they go to bed: The bread and the jelly are great sources of simple carbohydrates, which are terrible usually, but great for sleep," Wenk explains.

What makes this sandwich unique? The PB&J will aid your blood sugar, while the simple carbs and protein from the nuts and bread makes the perfect serotonin-boosting cocktail.

Serotonin is produced from the amino acid tryptophan and is said to act as a mood enhancer and sleep pattern stabilizer. Nuts and seeds contain tryptophan and carbs promote the release of insulin. The insulin promotes absorption of amino acids, and hence your body is able to better absorb the serotonin. Vitamin B, found in whole grains, will also help tryptophan convert to serotonin, and further metabolized into melatonin. There is some debate over whether getting serotonin from food will actually make a significant difference in mood and sleep; but as long as you are not sensitive to the ingredients, a PB&J sandwich is relatively easy to digest. This easy snack won't keep you awake, promoting pleasant dreams.

2. Turkey (And Tryptophan-Rich Foods)

Looking to relive the peace of that after-Thanksgiving nap? The amino acid tryptophan is great for encouraging sleep and balancing mood. Our bodies do not make it, so instead we get it from foods such as eggs, soy, cheese, fish, nuts, and of course, turkey. A heavy protein-rich meal can bring on drowsiness, also known as a "food coma" or if you want to impress a date: "Postprandial somnolence."

The turkey and the stuffing make the perfect combo of carb and protein to encourage the production of serotonin. However, eating a large, rich meal will lead to gastrointestinal discomfort, busting up your sleep cycle. If you want to eat turkey before bed- just a little will do, and be sure to have carbs like a few whole grain crackers along side. You know what they say about too much of a good thing.

3. Cheese (And Sadly All Dairy)

Cheese gets a bad rap when it come to bedtime tummy troubles, but did you know it has more tryptophan than turkey? A 2015 study published in Frontiers In Psychology sought to clear up the cheese-nightmare myth which has been popularized in the early-1900s by the comic strip Dreams of A Rarebit Fiend. In the comic, the savory spicy cheese dish called Welsh Rarebit is the cause of the hero's nightly disturbances.

Canadian psychologists Tore Nielsen and Russell Powell, looking to investigate the connection between food and dreams, administered surveys to 396 freshman college students. They found that 17.8 percent of participants believed that eating before bed, or eating a certain food would influence their dreams. Sadly, dairy products, including cheese and milk, were the most repeated types of food blamed for causing both disturbing and bizarre dreams. But you don't have to forego the cheddar right away, as these surveys weren't necessarily conclusive. There are many reasons cheese could lead to trouble, including that dairy is one of the most common food sensitivities. Those nightmares could be due to an upset stomach demanding you wake up! But if you are down with the cheese, you can probably handle a few slices before bed.

4. Steak (And Heavy Or Fatty Foods)

Ever have trouble sleeping during a hot and humid summer, but are able to doze off in an instant during a chilly winter night? We generally sleep better when our environments are at lower temperatures, our bodies even cool down when we sleep to conserve energy. And the act of eating before bed can throw this body chemistry a bit off.

Eating boosts metabolism and raises the body temperature, which can disturb your natural sleep pattern. Dr. Wenk confirms, " The interesting thing about dream content when you dream outside of REM is that it incorporates things that are going on around you, especially in your body. So, does body state influence how you dream? Sure. Body temperature, having a fever, room temperature - those will all be incorporated into the dream narrative."

So next time you have a late reservation at that steak house you've been dying to try - a three-course meal might not be the way to go. (Maybe stop by for lunch?)

5. Chocolate

I'd like to think chocolate can pretty much cure anything (especially a bad mood). But whether chocolate improves or disrupts your dreams is under some debate. In a blog post in Psychology Today, Dr. Wenk explains that chocolate contains a "complex variety of chemicals" that are generally harmless, however, " when considered in aggregate they may exert compound effects throughout the body; some of those effects may be desirable while others may not. Chocolate is an excellent example of how difficult it is to differentiate food from drug." Tell me about it, because I am definitely a little addicted. But just to be safe, you might want to limit your chocolate intake before bed - the caffeine in chocolate probably won't help you drift off to Snoozeville either.

6. Spicy Foods

Spicy foods and fried foods, while oh so delicious, can cause indigestion that can lead to not-so-pleasant dreams. Spicy foods are constantly called out for disrupting sleep and leading to nightmares. Some even believe that eating a lot of spices, like nutmeg, can have psychoactive properties. I know it sucks, but probably better to avoid the curry-dusted fries before bed.

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6 Foods That Can Affect Your Dreams & Sleep

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If you're tossing and turning at night with no clue as to why, consider this: your bedtime snack could be affecting your dreams. Poll friends and you are sure to find plenty of personal anecdotes of being plagued by nightmares after splurging on a la

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What influences our dreams? (Huffington Post)

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What influences our dreams? (Huffington Post)

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Sounds
Smells
Sleeping Position
Your State Of Mind
Quitting (Drugs, Sugar, Alcohol, etc)
Drugs and Vitamins (Pills)

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How to Have Good Dreams - How to Avoid Nightmares

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How to Have Good Dreams - How to Avoid Nightmares

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You hate how your mother-in-law meddles in your marriage, so it's no shocker when you tell her off in your dream-dreams are, after all, your brain's way of working through unresolved conflicts. But what can explain that recent string of random nightmares or incredibly vivid visions? "We know a bit about things that affect dream recall and make for more nightmares," says Deirdre Barrett, PhD, assistant clinical professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA, and author of The Committee of Sleep. So here, 11 surprising things that can influence what pops up in your dreams or how likely you are to remember them.

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11 Surprising Things That Affect Your Dreams

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You hate how your mother-in-law meddles in your marriage, so it's no shocker when you tell her off in your dream-dreams are, after all, your brain's way of working through unresolved conflicts. But what can explain that recent string of random nightmares or incredibly vivid visions?

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The Science Behind Dreaming - Scientific American

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The Science Behind Dreaming - Scientific American

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New research sheds light on how and why we remember dreams--and what purpose they are likely to serve

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6 Things That Influence Your Dreams | HuffPost

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6 Things That Influence Your Dreams | HuffPost

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When we're sleeping, our bodies do everything they can to stay asleep. So rather than waking us up, outside stimuli -- smells, sounds, sensations -- often become woven into our dream narratives. "The dreaming mind has this really cool way of seemingly flawlessly incorporating the outside interference into the storyline of the dream," explains Lauri Loewenberg, a certified dream analyst and member of the International Association for the Study of Dreams.

Which means that there are a lot of influences that can shape how your dreams play out. Just keep in mind that your natural dreams, i.e. those that aren't at the mercy of what's happening around you in the real world, help you process your thoughts and feelings about your day. Too much interference, Loewenberg says, "can be disruptive to the message your dreaming mind is trying to give you."

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When we're sleeping, our bodies do everything they can to stay asleep. So rather than waking us up, outside stimuli -- smells, sounds, sensations -- often become woven into our dream narratives.

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Who: Middle Schoolers
What: Life Impact on Dreams
Where: School and Home