Mornings can be tough–and they can be especially difficult to get through when you wake up feeling bloated. You’re uncomfortable, you can barely fit into your jeans, and your digestive system seems to be working against you. Luckily, there are ways to prevent this. While there are many factors that can lead to bloating, one of the biggest ones (and the one we have the most control over) is our diet. If you’re sick of waking up with a bloated stomach, keeping the issue at may be as simple as changing your nighttime eating habits.
To learn more about which foods frequently result in morning gas and bloating, we spoke to Lisa Richards, nutritionist and creator of The Candida Diet. She told us that high-fiber, high-carb options like apples are some of the biggest offenders. Learn more about why you might want to avoid eating apples before bed to prevent digestive issues below.
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Apples
Although we all know the saying “an apple a day keeps the doctor away,” Richards says it’s probably not a great idea to eat your apple at night if you want to keep bloating at bay. While vegetables and fruits like this one are an important part of your diet and offer a range of health benefits, she notes that they can “actually lead to bloating more than realized.” And when it comes to the worst culprits, she says that foods with high amounts of both fiber and carbs, which “can be irritating to some individuals,” are at the top of the list–and unfortunately for those of us who love a crunchy apple, this fruit is packed with both. “Apples contain a high amount of fiber and fructose, both of which can lead to bloat, especially among those with fructose sensitivities,” Richards warns.
She explains that “the carbs in fruit require specific enzymes to be properly digested.” That means that if your body is lacking the proper enzymes to digest them, apples can lead to gas and bloating. One carb found in apples that may cause you to wake up feeling especially bloated if eaten late at night is fructose, a.k.a. fruit sugar, which she says can “lead to gastrointestinal irritation that exhibits bloating.” Yikes!
Then there’s the issue of fiber. Of course, getting enough fiber into your diet is essential if you want to stay healthy and keep your digestive system running smoothly–but you could also run into the issue of eating too much fiber, especially if you’re chowing down on apples before bed. “Fruits that are high in fiber typically lead to excess bloat,” Richards says.
Ultimately, while it’s important to ensure you’re eating high-fiber foods to meet your daily intake (which should be around 25 to 30 grams), consuming too much of it before you go to sleep could lead to discomfort in the morning–so it’s probably best to keep your apple-snacking earlier in the day. The more you know!
