Snacking before bed can be comforting after a long, stressful, or exhausting day, but your food choices can either promote restful sleep or disrupt it. Choosing the wrong snacks can disrupt your digestion, sleep quality, and even slow down the fat-burning processes.
We checked in with Michael O. McKinney, MD, physician at Healthy Outlook and Dr. Kubanych Takyrbashev, MD, Health & Wellness Advisor at NAO, to learn about some of the worst snack options before bedtime. They revealed that the worst snacks to eat before bed are ice cream and chips & crackers. Keep reading for all the details!
1. Ice cream
Ice cream is probably one of the most popular bedtime snacks. However, as comforting as it is to eat a tub of ice cream while sitting on the couch watching your favorite show, it’s not so great for your metabolism, sleep, or weight. Ice cream is loaded with sugar and fat, which can negatively impact both metabolism and sleep.
Kubanych elaborates and says, "I know ice cream is a comforting treat, but it is high in both sugar and fat, which can lead to weight gain over time."
He further adds, "The combination of these two can spike blood sugar levels, causing a crash later that might disturb your sleep. Poor sleep quality can further exacerbate metabolic issues, as sleep is crucial for the body's recovery and metabolic regulation."
2. Chips or crackers
Chips and crackers are another poor choice for a bedtime treat. Many of the chips and crackers we buy are usually made with refined carbs, unhealthy fats, and high levels of sodium. The sodium content leads to water retention, ultimately leading to bloating. The blood sugar levels spike up due to the refined carbs, which can slow down your metabolism overnight.
"These items usually contain a lot of processed and bad carbohydrates, which can bring about inflammation and disturb the body’s metabolism even as one sleeps," McKinney notes.
The blood sugar rollercoaster from these snacks can trigger the release of cortisol (the stress hormone), making it harder to relax and fall asleep.
For better sleep, swap chips, crackers, and ice cream for sleep-friendly snacks like nuts, yogurt, or a banana with almond butter!
