Then eat less sugar.
This is the view put forward by Michael Bruce, a clinical psychologist, in an article published in Psychology Today. In his article, he discussed the connection between sugar and the brain, and how the interaction between them affects the quality of sleep and intensifies your desire for sweets.
Breus is a researcher at the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Many patients will sleep better after starting a "clean diet" or following a diet that emphasizes eating whole and unprocessed foods.
"What are the most powerful but underestimated benefits of a healthy diet, especially when combined with exercise?" This will greatly promote sleep, "Breus said.
Many studies also show that eating more sugar is related to poor sleep quality. For example, in a study of 20 16, researchers found that eating more sugar was related to more restlessness and intermittent sleep. The researchers divided the two groups of participants into two groups. One group ate a healthy and moderate diet, while the other group ate whatever they wanted.
Volunteers in the second diet consume significantly more sugar and fat and spend less time in deep slow-wave sleep, which is very important for the recovery and healing of the body and maintaining healthy metabolism and immune function. In addition, those who eat more sugar take longer to fall asleep and wake up more often at night.
Alex Evans, a British nutritionist who was not involved in the study, explained how sugar destroys sleep.
"Eating sugar at night will make you overexcited. It gives you energy and prepares you for your activities, but that's not what we do at night. We plan to close at the end of today, "he told the Guardian.
Breus also said that some sugary snacks contain caffeine, a compound usually found in refreshing drinks such as coffee, which helps to keep drinkers awake and alert.
"Have you ever eaten dark chocolate and then couldn't sleep well at night?" "It's a combination of sugar and caffeine, which will interfere with your rest," he said.
Eating more sweets will also make you more addicted to sugar. Breus explained that sugar activates the brain's reward center and a complex hormone network to regulate hunger and metabolism. In fact, according to Breus, sugar is such a powerful trigger that just seeing sweets is enough to stimulate your reward center.
Breus went on to say that when you eat sugar or see sugar, your brain releases dopamine, which makes you feel happy-also known as "dopamine impulse". "However, eating more sugar will make your brain less sensitive to this excitement. You must produce more dopamine to experience euphoria, which in turn translates into eating more sugar.
Breus said that if this sounds a bit like addiction, it's because dopamine activation affected by sugar is rewarded in the same way as alcohol and other possible triggers. In fact, researchers have long considered whether sugar addiction constitutes a clinical obstacle.
The effects of eating a high-sugar diet are also interrelated and even mutually reinforcing. Breus explained that eating too many sweets will affect appetite, and eating late at night will affect sleep. On the contrary, poor sleep will interfere with the normal production of hormones that regulate appetite, thus aggravating your desire for sweets.
Reducing sugar intake, eating a high-fiber diet and emphasizing whole and unprocessed foods will help you sleep better and resist the temptation of sweets.