Making simple dietary tweaks can help you sleep better, have more energy throughout the day, avoid headaches and boost your overall day-to-day health.
Experts recommend foods such as nuts, salmon, fruits and even just a simple glass of water to ease many common ailments. Meanwhile, processed foods, sugary treats and drinks, and coffee should be avoided if a person wants to feel their best every day.
Tired? Drink more water and avoid sugary snacks
The most common issue many adults may face is tiredness and fatigue. While many resort to chugging coffee every day to stay awake at work or school, that may be doing little to actually help them feel better – and instead just papering over the problem a few hours at a time.
Sasson says that water – not coffee – is the most important thing to drink to maintain energy throughout the day. She says a person should be drinking enough water that they are urinating every few hours, and that their urine is at least a light yellow color.
Dehydration can be incredibly tiring for the body. Water acts as a natural lubricant for bodily processes and not having enough water forces the body’s internal systems to work harder, using up more energy.
Potassium can help boost hydration as well. The element is an electrolyte that can provide many of the same benefits that a sports drink does – just without the sugar and processing that can bog a person down and expose them to unneeded chemicals.
Bananas are an excellent source of potassium, as are other fruits including oranges, tomatoes and avocados.
Food’s that are high in carbs can be valuable energy sources as well. The body breaks carbs into glucose, with then serve as the primary source of energy for many organs – along with cells and tissue that carry out internal processes.
Nuts are considered an excellent, healthy, source of carbs. Experts highlight cashews, almonds and pistachios as quick ways to get a boost in energy.
Consuming too much sugar can have the opposite effect on a person. The substance can limit the brain’s production of Orexin – a chemical that makes the brain feel more awake. As a result, a person who consumes a lot of sugar can quickly crash after a quick boost of energy.
Refined carbs, which are often found in processes foods, can have the same effect. A person will often feel a glucose-fueled burst of energy immediately after eating before suffering a quick crash as their body’s production of key hormones is inhibited.
Because of this, Sasson recommends against sweets like cookies and candies throughout the day, and says that a person worried about energy levels should avoid highly processed fast food.
Can’t sleep? Have a kiwifruit – but avoid alcohol
While some may feel ready to go to sleep all day, many others find themselves rolling around in bed for hours before finally getting a good night’s rest. In some cases, a person may experience tiredness all day – and then have trouble sleeping when the time finally comes to rest.
Sasson says that the overreliance some people have on caffeine throughout the day may be the cause of this. A person who drinks too much coffee throughout the day may have lingering caffeine in their system disrupting their night’s rest – especially for people more sensitive to it.
The same effect may occur for people who consume sugar too soon before bed. The glucose in many sugary treats can cause an initial spike in energy that will keep someone awake for an extended period of time.
While many use alcohol to help tire themselves out before bed, Sasson recommends against this as well.
Alcohol can tire someone out quickly – leading to a crash – but the body needs to metabolize it in the liver. This process could lead to a person waking back up in a matter of hours without getting proper rest.
Alcohol is also, generally, unhealthy to use daily as a sort of sleep-aid, especially for younger people.
Those who need some help going to and staying asleep each night could instead reach for natural remedies. Cow’s milk naturally contains melatonin, a hormone the brain naturally produces to help regulate its day-and-night cycle.
The fatty acids found in many fish, like salmon, also help stimulate the body’s natural production of melatonin – making sleep not only easier but higher quality.
Studies have also found that the anti-oxidants in fruits like kiwis can help reduce stress and help a person both fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer.
Credit: dailymail.co.uk
