1. Pasta
Pasta, and other carbs, are a fast and easy fix for those evening cravings and a quick bite before bed, but it is 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 — won’t make any of it better.
These carbohydrates also result in your blood sugar to spike because of the high amount of glycemic index levels, which will eventually result in sleep delay and you waking up at night.
2. Red meat
A big, juicy steak may be delicious, but it is not the best thing to eat right before bed. Red meat will kick your body’s natural processes into overtime and will make it very difficult to fall asleep while you’re digesting. Red meat may have the worst effect on your body, but eating a large portion of chicken or pork will have the same effect as well.
You don’t have to avoid eating proteins before going to bed altogether, but just make sure that you go for the lean variant or eat smaller portions.
3. Cereal
You might think that digging in to a bowl of cereal is the right thing to do to settle your hunger but unfortunately it is not. Most cereals are packed with sugar causing your blood sugar to increase drastically over a very short period of time. Additionally, your body will also store the sugar entirely as fat.
If you want to eat a snack before going to bed, try a bowl of popcorn instead (and not the caramel covered ones of course).
4. Celery
Finding celery on this list might surprise you, but there’s a simple reason for it: celery is a natural diuretic. This means that the vegetable is going to make you pee a bit more than usual.
Diuretics raise the rate of urination because they push water through the system. So that means that if you eat too much celery right before going to sleep at night, your body might interrupt your sleep for a pee break. Vegetables are some of the most nutrient-rich foods you can give your body if you want to stay healthy, but avoid ones like celery for the sake of uninterrupted sleep.
5. Pizza
Pizza is delicious, so I completely understand why you would want to eat this delicious snack as a meal. Next time just try to eat pizza for lunch instead of in the evening. Pizza isn’t exactly a light meal; your stomach will have to get busy to digest the meal before you drift off to sleep at night.
The fatty, greasy toppings and the layer of tomato sauce that pizza is known for will not only lead to weight gain, but can also cause heart burn and other related issues due to its high levels of acidity. That’s not the wakeup call you want at night, now do you?
6. Chips and other processed snacks
One of the great things about snacks like potato chips is how convenient they are. You just grab a bag and finish it, and before you know it your cravings have disappeared. The problem is that processed foods, such as chips, have high doses of monosodium glutamate, which will almost certainly lead to sleep-related issues that you probably want to avoid.
Greasy, heavy, fatty foods not only make you feel sluggish the next morning, but they also make your stomach work overdrive to digest all that food. Just like pizza, a bit of potato chips won’t hurt but finishing the entire bag definitely will.
7. *******
Sure, it’s not technically food, but it is definitely an important one to remember. A “nightcap” may seem like a great idea, but actually you’ll be messing with the restorative functions of sleep due to the dehydrating effect ******* has on your body. Even if you do get some rest, your sleep will remain shallow and you will face several awakenings throughout the night.
If you are going for a deep, peaceful sleep, ******* should be avoided.
8. Ice cream
A bowl of ice cream might be the most comforting option after a long day, but there is a limit to its soothing properties.
For starters, ice cream is packed with fat, so you’re not going to give your body a chance to burn any of it before going to sleep, and then all of the sugar is going to pump your body full of energy right before you fall asleep, so you will be sending your body mixed messages. On top of that, the sugar just gets stored and turned to fat, so eating ice-cream in the evenings 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 calm you down in that second the results are unnerving afterwards.
9. Chocolate
Who doesn’t like to eat a little bit of chocolate right before going to bed? Unfortunately, if you are going for a good night’s sleep, dark chocolate is one of the foods you should better stay away from.
Dark chocolate is a sneaky source of caffeine, which is known to boost your energy levels. 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.
If you really are craving chocolate, white chocolate is your best bet, which doesn’t have theobromine and is usually short on caffeine.
Pasta, and other carbs, are a fast and easy fix for those evening cravings and a quick bite before bed, but it is 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 — won’t make any of it better.
These carbohydrates also result in your blood sugar to spike because of the high amount of glycemic index levels, which will eventually result in sleep delay and you waking up at night.
2. Red meat
A big, juicy steak may be delicious, but it is not the best thing to eat right before bed. Red meat will kick your body’s natural processes into overtime and will make it very difficult to fall asleep while you’re digesting. Red meat may have the worst effect on your body, but eating a large portion of chicken or pork will have the same effect as well.
You don’t have to avoid eating proteins before going to bed altogether, but just make sure that you go for the lean variant or eat smaller portions.
3. Cereal
You might think that digging in to a bowl of cereal is the right thing to do to settle your hunger but unfortunately it is not. Most cereals are packed with sugar causing your blood sugar to increase drastically over a very short period of time. Additionally, your body will also store the sugar entirely as fat.
If you want to eat a snack before going to bed, try a bowl of popcorn instead (and not the caramel covered ones of course).
4. Celery
Finding celery on this list might surprise you, but there’s a simple reason for it: celery is a natural diuretic. This means that the vegetable is going to make you pee a bit more than usual.
Diuretics raise the rate of urination because they push water through the system. So that means that if you eat too much celery right before going to sleep at night, your body might interrupt your sleep for a pee break. Vegetables are some of the most nutrient-rich foods you can give your body if you want to stay healthy, but avoid ones like celery for the sake of uninterrupted sleep.
5. Pizza
Pizza is delicious, so I completely understand why you would want to eat this delicious snack as a meal. Next time just try to eat pizza for lunch instead of in the evening. Pizza isn’t exactly a light meal; your stomach will have to get busy to digest the meal before you drift off to sleep at night.
The fatty, greasy toppings and the layer of tomato sauce that pizza is known for will not only lead to weight gain, but can also cause heart burn and other related issues due to its high levels of acidity. That’s not the wakeup call you want at night, now do you?
6. Chips and other processed snacks
One of the great things about snacks like potato chips is how convenient they are. You just grab a bag and finish it, and before you know it your cravings have disappeared. The problem is that processed foods, such as chips, have high doses of monosodium glutamate, which will almost certainly lead to sleep-related issues that you probably want to avoid.
Greasy, heavy, fatty foods not only make you feel sluggish the next morning, but they also make your stomach work overdrive to digest all that food. Just like pizza, a bit of potato chips won’t hurt but finishing the entire bag definitely will.
7. *******
Sure, it’s not technically food, but it is definitely an important one to remember. A “nightcap” may seem like a great idea, but actually you’ll be messing with the restorative functions of sleep due to the dehydrating effect ******* has on your body. Even if you do get some rest, your sleep will remain shallow and you will face several awakenings throughout the night.
If you are going for a deep, peaceful sleep, ******* should be avoided.
8. Ice cream
A bowl of ice cream might be the most comforting option after a long day, but there is a limit to its soothing properties.
For starters, ice cream is packed with fat, so you’re not going to give your body a chance to burn any of it before going to sleep, and then all of the sugar is going to pump your body full of energy right before you fall asleep, so you will be sending your body mixed messages. On top of that, the sugar just gets stored and turned to fat, so eating ice-cream in the evenings 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 calm you down in that second the results are unnerving afterwards.
9. Chocolate
Who doesn’t like to eat a little bit of chocolate right before going to bed? Unfortunately, if you are going for a good night’s sleep, dark chocolate is one of the foods you should better stay away from.
Dark chocolate is a sneaky source of caffeine, which is known to boost your energy levels. 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.
If you really are craving chocolate, white chocolate is your best bet, which doesn’t have theobromine and is usually short on caffeine.
