Are you having trouble sleeping? Does it take long for you to fall asleep or do you wake up often during the night? Before you reach for those sleeping drugs, there may be a few things you need to address in your diet first.
There is research that suggests that how you eat DOES affect how you sleep.(1) To demonstrate this fact, there are even studies that show that you get better quality sleep on a low-carbohydrate diet.(2,3)
Also, there is plenty of evidence that links a magnesium deficiency to disruptive sleep patterns.(4) Because of a more processed diet from refined grains, magnesium has been depleted in Westernized diets. Therefore, there are many who suffer from magnesium deficiency and do not even know it.
Bone broth is a GREAT source of minerals such as magnesium, calcium, and phosphorus (all of which help you to sleep, by the way). So, it’s a good idea to have some bone broth handy before you sleep. You can store it in the freezer and use a little every day. Here is a recipe for how to make home-made broth.
In addition to the above, there is also research that suggests that specific amino acids, such as tryptophan, can have an effect on sleep patterns due to its influence on neurotransmitters like serotonin. (5) Therefore, getting the right amounts of specific amino acids could be important for better sleep.
So, what CAN you do to sleep better? Here are a few tips:
- Use magnesium oil on your skin before you sleep. This will help replenish magnesium levels for better sleep.
- Drink bone broth either by itself or in the form of soup a few hours before sleep.
- Take a broad-spectrum amino acid supplement. This will ensure better absorption of all amino acids.
(Contact a functional medicine professional to help you with the right quantities of the above).
So, like I said earlier, before reaching for those sleeping pills, reach for the sources of nutrition that will help your body sleep more naturally. You sleep as well as you eat!