Carbs and sleep… Milk and cookies before bed may be comforting and are associated with a bedtime snack, however it is actually counterproductive to good sleep quality, and leads to weight gain as well.
Although simple carbohydrates may be sedating and even decrease sleep latency {1}, consuming a high glycemic load does not equate to better sleep. It is important to remember that with surges in blood sugar that accompany a high glycemic load, there is a subsequent drop in blood sugar four to five hours later. The body’s homeostasis responds with increase in appetite as well as well as surges of norepinephrine, a stimulating neurotransmitter associated with alertness. {2} This is the same phenomena that leads to overeating and obesity when a person has a high glycemic breakfast, for example someone has a sugary cereal or a donut for breakfast may feel hungry a few hours later. This suggest that milk and cookies before bed, though may induce sleepiness, is less than ideal for sleep quality. Indeed when evaluation of high and low glycemic index drinks on children’s sleep pattern are conducted, there is sleep disturbance noted in the high glycemic compared to low glycemic including polysomnography data showing more Non-REM over REM sleep and increased and higher total arousal indexes. {3} This is a parallel finding as seen in the use of alcohol, where the sedating properties may shorten sleep onset, alcohol consumed within an hour of bedtime disrupts the second half of the sleep period {4}. Essentially sugar for sleep is like alcohol without the buzz.
In the Women’s Health Initiative study carbohydrate consumption was associated with less difficulty maintaining sleep, however it is important to note that this benefit is more with complex carbohydrates, as there were deleterious effects of sugar and benefits of fiber noted. Sugar intake was associated with adverse effects of more excessive daytime sleepiness. Increased fiber resulted in less difficulty maintaining sleep, less difficulty non-restorative sleep, and less daytime sleepiness. {5} Another study found sugar and high glycemic load to be associated with fatigue as well. A high-glycemic load diet is associated with higher depression symptoms, total mood disturbance, and fatigue compared to a low-glycemic load diet especially in overweight/obese, but otherwise healthy, adults. {6} It is important to note that mood disturbances are associated with poor sleep as well.
So what should you eat before sleep? This will be reviewed in future posts, stay tuned…
1. Afaghi A, O’Connor H, Chow CM. High-glycemic-index carbohydrate meals shorten sleep onset. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007 Feb;85(2):426-30
2. Ludwig DS, Majzoub JA, Al-Zahrani A, Dallal GE, Blanco I, Roberts SB. High glycemic index foods, overeating, and obesity. Pediatrics 1999, 103:e261-6
3. Jalilolghadr S, Afaghi A, O’Connor H, Chow CM. Effect of low and high glycaemic index drink on sleep pattern in children. J Pak Med Assoc. 2011 Jun;61(6):533-6.
4. Landolt, H.-P., et al. Late-afternoon ethanol intake affects nocturnal sleep and the sleep EEG in middle-aged men. J Clin Psychopharmacol 16(6):428-436, 1996.
5. Grandner MA, Jackson N, Gerstner JR, Knutson KL. Sleep symptoms associated with intake of specific dietary nutrients. J Sleep Res. 2014 Feb;23(1):22-34
6. Breymeyer KL, Lampe JW, McGregor BA, Neuhouser ML. Subjective mood and energy levels of healthy weight and overweight/obese healthy adults on high-and low-glycemic load experimental diets. Appetite. 2016 Dec 1;107:253-259.
