Are you struggling to sleep? These two things to eat or drink before bed-time may help!

"A lack of sleep or insomnia impacts many of us. Having a full eight hours of sleep is essential for your health and productivity. Ever woken up feeling groggy or struggled to get a good nights sleep? Experts say what you eat or drink before bed could be impacting the quality of your sleep.

Everyone knows to avoid caffeine before bed, experts now recommend that on top of ditching coffee before bed you might be able to boost your sleep by drinking cherry juice.

According to sleep experts from 'Mattress-Next-Day', drinking tart cherry juice before bed may boost your sleep by 1.5 hours or more a night.

They point to several studies that show consuming tart cherry juice can help calibrate your circadian rhythm, also known as your internal body clock, to help promote sleep.

Cherry juice helps increase your body's production of melatonin, a critical hormone for your sleep.

Studies show Brits who drink cherry juice before settling down increased their sleep by an average of 84 minutes, so if you find yourself starving off insomnia cherry juice might be able to help you.

According to Dr Karanr, the myth that eating cheese before bed gives you nightmares could be an old wives tale.

He recommends eating cheese before bed could give you a better nights sleep.

He added cheese is packed with tryptophan used by the brain to make melatonin which helps induce sleep.

Cheese is high in calcium which can reduce stress and helps to stabilise your nervous system, both of which could help you to become more settled for sleep.

Simple lifestyle changes can make a huge difference to your quality of sleep.

Aside from the obvious factors such as trying to relax before bed, having a good quality mattress and cutting down on your caffeine, the NHS has put together a few easy lifestyle changes to help you get a more restful nights sleep.

The NHS encourages Brits to keep their sleeping pattern as regular as possible.

Keep regular sleep hours
They say going to bed and getting up at roughly the same time every day is key to beating insomnia.

If you maintain a regular sleeping pattern every day you will effectively be programming your body to sleep better.

This will work best if you can pick a time when you are likely to feel sleepy and stick to it.

Make a note of your worries
Do you ever find yourself lying in bed awake at night thinking about the ever-growing number of things you need to do tomorrow?

You might be able to banish these worries by writing them down before you go to bed.

Set aside a few minutes before you climb into bed to jot down what you need to do tomorrow instead of forming these plans in your head whilst you are trying to get to sleep.

Avoid smoking
Caffeine is an obvious stimulant but did you know nicotine is another one? Brits who smoke take longer to fall asleep the NHS says.

Smokers wake up more often and have more disrupted sleep than non-smokers so, if you suffer from restless nights you may want to consider giving up smoking."
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"Potential Risks of Tart Cherry Juice 

Please note, cherry juice will not suit everyone.
Because tart cherry juice has such potent ingredients, you should consult with your doctor before taking it or any other supplement.

Consider the following before drinking tart cherry juice
Sugar Content
Tart cherry juice contains sugar, and some brands may contain added sugars. If you have diabetes or another condition that affects blood sugar, you should speak to your healthcare provider before adding tart cherry juice to your diet. You can still reap the benefits of tart cherry through capsule supplements if drinking the juice is not recommended for you.
Medication Interactions
Tart cherry juice may interact with some medications. For example, medications used to control blood pressure and cholesterol levels. Speak to your healthcare provider if you are concerned about medication interactions with tart cherry juice."

Read more here

Related Posts

Simple Steps To A Better Night's Sleeps, five suggestions - see here

If Sometimes Sleep is Elusive - Getting Quality Rest Helps - see here
Ten Reasons You're Always Tired (and what you can do about it) - see here

Have you any tips for a better nights sleep?

Do please share them in the comments.

You will find a variety of articles and recipe ideas within this blog. Please note, not all may be suitable for you. If you may have any food allergies, or underlying health issues these must always be taken into account. If you are a diabetic and not sure how certain foods may affect your blood sugars, test is best, i.e. use your meter.

All the best Jan