Sleep is a fundamental biological process essential for physical health, cognitive function, and emotional regulation, yet its quality is increasingly compromised in modern societies. Lifestyle factors, including diet, have emerged as important modulators of sleep quality. For example, it is known that heavy meals just before bedtime can disrupt sleep, leading to nocturnal awakenings and waking up feeling like we haven’t rested properly¹.
Growing scientific evidence indicates that what individuals eat during the day can influence sleep onset, duration, and efficiency through complex interactions with metabolic pathways, hormonal secretion, and neurotransmitter activity. Understanding the relationship between food consumption and sleep quality is therefore crucial for developing nutritional strategies aimed at improving sleep and promoting overall health.
Diets rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins have been consistently associated with better sleep quality, while poor dietary patterns characterized by high energy density and low nutrient quality are linked to sleep disturbances¹,².
Several studies have analyzed the influence of certain foods in promoting better sleep. A study from the American Journal of Therapeutics, for example, found that cherry juice increased sleep time and efficiency probably through the increases in tryptophan availability³. Similar results were found with kiwi fruit consumption, also associated with a significant reduction in the number of awakenings after sleep onset4. In addition, micronutrients such as magnesium, zinc, calcium, and B-complex vitamins are critical for optimal sleep quality due to their roles in neural signaling and melatonin production.
What roles do melatonin and tryptophan play in our sleep?
Melatonin regulates our circadian rhythm, including sleep and wake cycle. Normally, our bodies produce more of it at the end of the day in response to darkness, signaling that it is time to initiate sleep. But in addition to that, we can also obtain it through food like eggs, fish, nuts and seeds5.
Foods rich in tryptophan also help regulate sleep, as it serves as the essential amino acid precursor for melatonin synthesis. Dietary tryptophan is first converted into serotonin in the brain, then, in the pineal gland, undergoes chemical modifications giving rise to melatonin, particularly during periods of darkness. Adequate intake of tryptophan-rich foods, such as dairy products, eggs, nuts, seeds, and legumes, supports this metabolic pathway and contributes to the regulation of circadian rhythms and sleep onset5.
All together suggest that promoting healthy eating habits may represent an effective, non-pharmacological strategy to support sleep quality and overall health.
For more information: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20250822-the-best-foods-to-help-you-sleep-better
References
1) Chung, N., Bin, Y. S., Cistulli, P. A., & Chow, C. M. (2020). Does the Proximity of Meals to Bedtime Influence the Sleep of Young Adults? A Cross-Sectional Survey of University Students. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(8), 2677. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17082677
2) St-Onge, M. P., Mikic, A., & Pietrolungo, C. E. (2016). Effects of diet on sleep quality. Advances in Nutrition, 7(5), 938–949.
3) Losso, J. N., Finley, J. W., Karki, N., Liu, A. G., Prudente, A., Tipton, R., Yu, Y., & Greenway, F. L. (2018). Pilot Study of the Tart Cherry Juice for the Treatment of Insomnia and Investigation of Mechanisms. American journal of therapeutics, 25(2), e194–e201. https://doi.org/10.1097/MJT.0000000000000584
4) Doherty, et al. (2023). The Impact of Kiwifruit Consumption on the Sleep and Recovery of Elite Athletes. Nutrients, 15(10), 2274. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu15102274
5) Peuhkuri, et al. (2012). Diet promotes sleep duration and quality. Nutrition Research, 32(5), 309–319.
