Fruits and vegetables could improve sleep of 16%, show new research

Your daily meal selections could influence the quality of your sleep, according to new research.

A study by the University of Chicago Medicine and Columbia University revealed that the increase in your consumption of fruits and vegetables could help promote more restful sleep.

Previous research has shown that people who have no quality sleep may be more likely to engage in unhealthy foods that are rich in fat and sugar – and now this new discovery sheds more light on how food consumed has an impact on sleep.

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In the small study – which was published in “Sleep Health: The Journal of the National Sleep Foundation” – 34 young healthy adults reported their daily food consumption and carried a tracker to measure the frequency to which they woke up or changed sleep habits during the night, according to a press release.

Those who said they had eaten more fruits and vegetables during the day were “deeper and more uninterrupted”.

A study by the University of Chicago Medicine and Columbia University revealed that the increase in your consumption of fruits and vegetables could help promote more restful sleep. (istock)

Larger quantities of healthy carbohydrates, such as whole grains, had the same advantage, according to the study.

“Food changes could be a new natural and profitable approach to succeed,” said co-author Esra Tasali, MD, director of Uchicago Sleep Center, in the press release.

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“Temporal associations and results objectively measured in this study represent crucial stages to fill a gap in important knowledge in public health.”

Based on the study results, researchers have concluded that people who eat at least five cups of fruit and vegetables per day could have a 16% increase in sleep quality compared to those who do not eat any of these foods.

“Small changes can have an impact on sleep. That is to say an authorization-better rest is under your control.”

“16% is a very significant difference,” said Tasali in the press release. “It is remarkable that such a significant change can be observed in less than 24 hours.”

“Based on current data, experts confidently advise that the regular consumption of a diet rich in carbohydrates, complex fruits and vegetables is the best for long -term sleep health,” the statement said.

Those who said they had eaten more fruits and vegetables during the day were “deeper and more uninterrupted”. (istock)

The American Heart Association provides the following examples of portions of fruits and vegetables which is equivalent to 1 cup of products.

• 8 large strawberries
• 1 large pepper
• 1 medium potato
• 22 grapes
• 2 medium carrots or 12 babies carrots
• 1 medium apple, orange, pear, fishing, grapefruit or nectarine

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The DRE Chelsie Rohrscheib, chief sleep expert in Wesper in Michigan, said that most sleep professionals recognize that healthy food supports global well -being, including sleep quality – “therefore the results of this study are not entirely unexpected.”

“However, it is important to note that it was a relatively small study composed mainly of young adult male participants, which limits generalization,” said Fox News Digital Rohrscheib, which was not involved in the study.

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“Although the results are statistically significant, the overall reduction in sleep fragmentation was modest, around 16%.”

The study was also of an observational nature, she noted, which means that it did not have control of a randomized trial.

“Based on current data, experts confidently advise that the regular consumption of a diet rich in complex carbohydrates, fruits and vegetables is preferable for long -term sleep health,” wrote researchers. (istock)

“Ideally, future research would compare a group consuming a diet rich in fruits and vegetables to a control group with a limited contribution to better establish causation,” added the doctor.

Researchers plan to carry out more studies to confirm that food causes better sleep and determine the “underlying mechanisms of digestion, neurology and metabolism” stimulating this impact, said publication.

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“People still ask me if there are things they can eat that will help them sleep better,” said co-ennior Marie-Pierre St-Onge, PHD, director of the Center of Excellence for Sleep & Circadian Research in Columbia, in the press release.

“Small changes can have an impact on sleep. That is to say an authorization-better rest is under your control.”