In an ideal world, we would all eat a hearty and healthy dinner. It would be followed by something small and sweet, a piece of dark chocolate, maybe, and then a few hours later we’d curl up in bed and sleep through the night, stomachs perfectly full until the next day.
The reality is more complicated. Whether we’re staying up later than we should, eating a small dinner, or feeling hungry for no good reason (it happens), many of us end up craving a snack before bed.
Although we have long heard that eating before bed is associated with weight gain, this is (thankfully) above all a myth. Having said that, what choosing to eat before bed could affect your weight over time, along with your ability to sleep soundly.
So if you know that skipping a bedtime snack will make your stomach rumble, what should you look for? We asked the nutritionists. Here are their top picks.
walnuts
According to Tracy Lockwood Beckerman, registered dietitianA rumbling stomach at night is your body’s way of telling you that it’s craving more calories and nutrients. Therefore, you should aim to eat foods that give you the most nutritional value for your money without requiring high maintenance.
That’s what makes walnuts such a great choice. “The nutritional profile of a nut is rich, contributing calcium, magnesium, B vitamins, protein, and heart-healthy fats like plant-based omega-3s,” Beckerman said. “Because walnuts have so many useful nutrients, investigate has found that consuming walnuts can help prevent type 2 diabetes and other cardiometabolic risk factors.”
Plantain
In addition to being delicious, bananas can help you fall asleep. “Bananas contain potassium, which is a natural muscle relaxant that helps you get a good night’s sleep,” Beckerman said. “They also have low-key tryptophan, which not only improves mood, but can also help you get a restful night’s sleep.”
One thing to keep in mind is that bananas contain a decent amount of sugar, about 15 grams per banana. While too much sugar can disrupt sleep, the sugar found in a banana is natural and will have less of an effect on blood sugar than refined sugars. And bananas have enough other benefits to keep them a worthwhile bedtime snack, one that’s unlikely to disrupt your sleep. That said, if you’re particularly sensitive to sugar, you may want to skip this one.
chocolate covered nuts
Let’s face it: most of us crave something sweet before bed. So it should be very good news that Beckerman is indulging in chocolate-covered nuts before bed. “You can’t go wrong with dark chocolate and nuts to satisfy hunger before bed, thanks to the blood-stabilizing protein and healthy fat that comes from the nuts,” he explained. “Dark chocolate is just the right amount of sweet, too.”
One caveat here is that dark chocolate contains caffeine: a bar of 70% to 85% solid dark chocolate has about 80 milligrams. For context, a cup of coffee has around 100 milligrams. If you’re eating a handful of dark chocolate covered nuts, you’re highly unlikely to consume an entire bar of caffeine, but caffeine affects us all differently, so if you know your sleep is affected when you consume even the amount smaller, another option might be better.
Greek yogurt with almonds and berries
If you’re willing to put in a little work (and by that we mean mixing a few foods together), registered dietitian Abby Vichill recommends Greek yogurt with almonds and berries.
“This is a great option because it has a balance of protein, carbohydrates and fat,” he said. “The carbs are in the berries (and yogurt), the protein is in the yogurt, the fat is in the almonds. Having something carb-based, something protein-based, and something fat-based before bed helps keep your blood sugar level balanced and prevents your body from waking up during the night due to the need for glucose.”
Peanut Butter Rice Cake
Vichill says this is another great bedtime snack, because peanut butter has protein and fat, and rice cakes have carbs. As mentioned above, that trio is great for keeping your blood sugar balanced throughout the night. Just do your best to skip the sugary peanut butter options!
dried shiitake mushrooms
Sure, you probably don’t have them at home yet. But Beckerman says that shiitake mushrooms are one of the best plant-based sources of vitamin D, which is essential for a good night’s rest. And he says that dried shiitake mushrooms are a quick and easy way to get them. “Vitamin D plays a role in melatonin production, and we want to make sure this hormone is blocked and charged before bed to ensure high-quality sleep,” he said. “I recommend Pan Mushroom Jerky.” If you don’t want to invest in mushroom jerky, you can always sauté the shiitake mushrooms before bed, or make them ahead of time and store them in the fridge to reheat.
How to avoid hunger at bedtime in the first place
While having a bedtime snack is perfectly fine, if you don’t like to eat before bed, there are plenty of things you can do to keep from getting hungry.
“I recommend consuming a sufficient number of calories earlier in the day. Don’t wait until dinner to eat two-thirds of your food,” Vichill said. “Aim for 25 to 30 grams of protein in your main meals and three to five servings of high-fiber or cruciferous vegetables at lunch and dinner.”
Beckerman adds that our bodies take a “nutritional inventory” at the end of the day and then decide what they may have missed. “That’s why we can experience a second wave of hunger before bed if the body doesn’t feel fully nourished and balanced with the right vitamins and minerals,” he said.
And if that happens, he says, don’t fight, just offer your body some food. After all, there’s a lot of joy to be found in a truly delicious bedtime snack!
This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
