{"id":1020,"date":"2016-11-09T12:15:58","date_gmt":"2016-11-09T20:15:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/healthykidshappykids.com\/?p=1020"},"modified":"2017-12-11T21:44:31","modified_gmt":"2017-12-12T05:44:31","slug":"eat-yourself-to-a-good-nights-sleep","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vps37072.inmotionhosting.com\/~healt472\/2016\/11\/09\/eat-yourself-to-a-good-nights-sleep\/","title":{"rendered":"Eat Yourself to a Good Night&#8217;s Sleep"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Guest post by Kandice Stellmon, NC<\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-1044\" src=\"https:\/\/healthykidshappykids.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Food-Sleep.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"900\" height=\"599\" srcset=\"https:\/\/vps37072.inmotionhosting.com\/~healt472\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Food-Sleep.jpg 900w, https:\/\/vps37072.inmotionhosting.com\/~healt472\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Food-Sleep-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/vps37072.inmotionhosting.com\/~healt472\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/11\/Food-Sleep-768x511.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Want a good night\u2019s sleep?\u00a0 Check out my nutrition Do\u2019s and Don\u2019t\u2019s for getting your best sleep ever!<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Nutrition Do\u2019s for a good night\u2019s sleep:<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>\u2018Gobble\u2019 up the <em>right<\/em> snack before bed.\u00a0 We\u2019ve all heard that the tryptophan found in turkey will help us fall asleep, which is why we fall into a food coma after a Thanksgiving feast, right?\u00a0 Well\u2026.sort of, kind of\u2026okay not really.\u00a0 While it\u2019s true that tryptophan, which is found in dairy, turkey, chicken and fish, can help your body make those \u2018sleepy happy hormones\u2019, leftover turkey right before bed isn\u2019t a magic pill.\u00a0 You&#8217;re better off eating your tryptophan foods throughout the day, and then eating a small, carbohydrate-rich snack (keep it under 30 grams) to boost serotonin before bedtime.\u00a0 Studies have shown that this CAN help with sleep! Good nighttime snack choices? A small piece of cheese with a few whole grain crackers, one or two cups of popcorn, or a slice of toast with a tablespoon of almond butter and sliced banana.<\/li>\n<li>Got Milk? Calcium is a sleep powerhouse! It helps us make melatonin &#8211; our critical sleep hormone that tells our bodies when to fall asleep and when to wake up.\u00a0 Studies have shown that folks who don\u2019t get enough calcium have disrupted sleep cycles and don\u2019t get enough REM sleep. But there\u2019s no need to warm up a glass of milk before bedtime \u2013 just make sure you are getting enough calcium throughout the day.\u00a0 And if you don\u2019t like milk or can\u2019t eat dairy \u2013 don\u2019t worry!\u00a0 There are tons of non-dairy calcium sources you can nosh on like dark green leafy veggies and fortified nut milks.<\/li>\n<li>Chocolate Fixes Everything! Okay, now that I have your attention \u2013 what I meant to say was that chocolate is a good source of magnesium, and magnesium can help you sleep better.\u00a0 \u00a0 I tricked you \u2013 not nice :-).\u00a0 Magnesium has been shown to lower cortisol levels (our stress hormone), increase melatonin levels and improve sleep quality and quantity.\u00a0 Foods that are rich in magnesium include lentils, nuts and seeds, whole grains, dark leafy greens and yes\u2026 chocolate.<\/li>\n<li>Melatonin to the rescue! As mentioned above, melatonin is super important for sleep.\u00a0 It is a hormone produced in our pineal gland \u2013 a tiny little gland in our brains &#8211; that helps to regulate our sleep \u2018clock\u2019.\u00a0 How can we boost our melatonin levels naturally? There are several yummy food sources of melatonin like: orange bell peppers, walnuts, flax seeds, almonds, raspberries, goji berries, tomatoes, and even spices such as fenugreek and mustard seeds. Studies show that eating fresh cherries (sour is better!) or drinking tart cherry juice can boost melatonin and improve sleep! Try an ounce or two before bedtime &#8211; it really works! As if I need another excuse to eat a huge bowl of cherries! How about a cherry almond milk smoothie?\u00a0 A double sleep whammy!<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Nutrition DONT&#8217;s for a good night\u2019s sleep:<\/strong><strong><br \/>\n<\/strong><\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Limit how much alcohol you drink. I know\u2026I know\u2026that bottle isn\u2019t going to finish itself, AND a glass of wine <em>can<\/em> sometimes help you fall asleep quicker.\u00a0 But drinking alcohol reduces our restorative REM sleep cycle, and also results in more disrupted sleep during the second half of the night.\u00a0 This means less overall sleep! \u00a0If you want to feel refreshed in the morning, skip the nightcap and settle down with a warm cup of chamomile tea instead.<\/li>\n<li>Avoid eating spicy and fatty foods right before you go to bed. These foods can be difficult to digest, causing reflux or bloating and discomfort &#8211; keeping you up longer than you like.\u00a0 Not fun.<\/li>\n<li>Caffeine is my best friend for a reason! When you&#8217;re dragging, a cup of java or green tea is perfect, but switch to decaf after 3:00pm if you&#8217;re having a difficult time falling asleep at night.\u00a0 Roiboos Tea is one of my favorite \u2018stronger\u2019 flavored herbal teas.\u00a0 Add a splash of unsweetened almond milk and a drizzle of honey for a late afternoon \u2018pick-me-up\u2019 that won\u2019t keep you awake later on.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Now eat right, sleep tight, and don\u2019t let the bed bugs bite! \ud83d\ude42 Good night!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Guest post by Kandice Stellmon, NC &nbsp; Want a good night\u2019s sleep?\u00a0 Check out my nutrition Do\u2019s and Don\u2019t\u2019s for getting your best sleep ever! Nutrition Do\u2019s for a good night\u2019s sleep: \u2018Gobble\u2019 up the right snack before bed.\u00a0 We\u2019ve all heard that the tryptophan found in<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1034,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false},"categories":[23,18,21,4,32,1],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Eat Yourself to a Good Night&#039;s Sleep - Healthy Kids Happy Kids<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/vps37072.inmotionhosting.com\/~healt472\/2016\/11\/09\/eat-yourself-to-a-good-nights-sleep\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Eat Yourself to a Good Night&#039;s Sleep - Healthy Kids Happy Kids\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Guest post by Kandice Stellmon, NC &nbsp; Want a good night\u2019s sleep?\u00a0 Check out my nutrition Do\u2019s and Don\u2019t\u2019s for getting your best sleep ever! 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