Insomnia has followed me for years now – through having kids, stressful jobs, and now my concussion.
I know how difficult it can be and work hard to manage it. Sadly, I know I’m one of many who are affected.
In fact, insomnia affects nearly one third of the population, according to a 2017 study published in Nutrients.
While having trouble sleeping might not seem like a big deal, lack of sleep can have some major health consequences that affect your:
- Cardiovascular system. Neurology published the recent findings of a 10-year study of 487,200 people that found insomnia is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease.
- Endocrine system. An 18 year study published in Diabetes Care found that subjects who slept less than 6 hours a night were twice as likely to develop diabetes.
- Immune system. Insomnia shifts your body from producing immune-enhancing proteins to pro-inflammatory cytokines, as published in this 2017 article by The American Journal of Clinical and Experimental Immunology, weakening your immune system.
- Nervous system. Sleep published a 2003 study of 48 healthy adults where sleep was restricted for 14 consecutive days, found that sleep deprivation does affect your daytime cognitive functioning (memory, alertness, effectiveness).
- Gut health. A 2019 study published by PLoS ONE, found that decreased sleep negatively impacted total microbiome diversity in the gut – having an even greater impact on all your systems above!
Stress, anxiety, depression, and gut bacteria imbalances are all common causes of insomnia.
While it needs to be remedied at its root cause, you can improve or address the symptom through the foods that you eat.
Melatonin, a hormone produced by the pineal gland, is well studied for its impact on sleep. Nutrients published a study in 2017 how eating melatonin-rich foods could help you sleep better.
Here are five foods that are naturally high in melatonin and could help you fight off insomnia (see the study above!):
- Pistachios. Try this delicious Pistachio Pomegranate Dark Chocolate Bark.
- Cherries. This Citrus Pepper Salmon Salad is delicious and includes cherries.
- Eggs. These Three-Way Deviled Eggs make the perfect evening snack.
- Peppers. A snack of Red Peppers + Guacamole is perfect when you have the evening munchies.
- Fatty Fish. Eat this Blackened Lime Salmon with Mango-Avocado Salsa for a great nights’ sleep.
If you’re struggling with insomnia – I want to encourage you to take action to make a change and you’ll improve your health in the long run. Book in a nutrition consultation with me and I’ll help you get there!
