From newsmax.com
Actress Blake Lively, who is the mother of three kids under the age of 5, says she'll sleep when she's dead.
While we sympathize with the gruelling routine that motherhood demands, we hope she's finding a way to get more rest. Her health, longevity, and happiness depend on it.
But we have a theory about what — besides her active trio — may be contributing to Blake’s sleeplessness. It turns out that she's a big fan of having a sweet treat before bedtime.
A new study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition reveals that eating carbs before bedtime contributes to insomnia.
The researchers found that the worst culprits are refined carbs with a high glycaemic index. That includes ice cream, soda, cookies, chips, and candy.
Such foods make your blood sugar spike, causing insulin to be secreted. Then your blood sugar drops quickly, stimulating the release of energizing hormones like cortisol and adrenaline.
Then guess what? You're awake.
Because 30% of Americans contend with insomnia, and the U.S. is an avid snacking nation — 62% of people snack throughout the day, and almost 50% have four or more snacks daily — we're betting late-night noshing is keeping a lot of folks awake.
If you need a bite of something before bed, try a slice of an apple or a pear (not a whole one) with a teaspoon of peanut butter on it. That touch of complex carbs with protein should keep the snack from keeping you up.
And you’ll feel a lot more Lively in the morning if you lay off the bedtime sweets.
https://www.newsmax.com/health/dr-oz/insomnia-carbohydrates-insulin-dr-oz/2020/01/23/id/951011/
Showing posts with label carbs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label carbs. Show all posts
Friday, 24 January 2020
Thursday, 19 December 2019
Refined Carbs Linked to Insomnia
From sleepreviewmag.com
A study found that postmenopausal women who consumed a diet high in refined carbohydrates—particularly added sugars—were more likely to develop insomnia.
Women whose diet included higher amounts of vegetables, fibre, and whole fruit (not juice) were less likely to develop problems with insomnia.
“Insomnia is often treated with cognitive behavioural therapy or medications, but these can be expensive or carry side effects,” says the study’s senior author James Gangwisch, PhD, assistant professor at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, in a release. “By identifying other factors that lead to insomnia, we may find straightforward and low-cost interventions with fewer potential side effects.”
The findings were published Dec 11 online in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
One way to determine if carb intake is causing sleep problems is to look for the emergence of insomnia in people with different diets.
In the current study, Gangwisch and his team gathered data from more than 50,000 participants in the Women’s Health Initiative who had completed food diaries. The researchers looked at whether women with higher dietary glycaemic index were more likely to develop insomnia.
A study found that postmenopausal women who consumed a diet high in refined carbohydrates—particularly added sugars—were more likely to develop insomnia.
Women whose diet included higher amounts of vegetables, fibre, and whole fruit (not juice) were less likely to develop problems with insomnia.
“Insomnia is often treated with cognitive behavioural therapy or medications, but these can be expensive or carry side effects,” says the study’s senior author James Gangwisch, PhD, assistant professor at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, in a release. “By identifying other factors that lead to insomnia, we may find straightforward and low-cost interventions with fewer potential side effects.”
The findings were published Dec 11 online in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Link Between Diet and Sleep Is an Emerging Research Area
Previous studies have explored a possible link between refined carbohydrates and insomnia, but results have been inconsistent. And because the studies didn’t follow individuals over time, it’s not clear if a diet that’s high in refined carbs triggered the onset of insomnia, or if insomnia caused individuals to eat more sweets.One way to determine if carb intake is causing sleep problems is to look for the emergence of insomnia in people with different diets.
In the current study, Gangwisch and his team gathered data from more than 50,000 participants in the Women’s Health Initiative who had completed food diaries. The researchers looked at whether women with higher dietary glycaemic index were more likely to develop insomnia.
All Carbs Aren’t Created Equally
Different kinds and amounts of carbohydrates increase blood sugar levels to varying degrees. Highly refined carbohydrates—such as added sugars, white bread, white rice, and soda—have a higher glycaemic index, and cause a more rapid increase in blood sugar.
“When blood sugar is raised quickly, your body reacts by releasing insulin, and the resulting drop in blood sugar can lead to the release of hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol, which can interfere with sleep,” Gangwisch says.
The researchers hypothesized that the rapid spikes and troughs in blood sugar after eating refined carbs may trigger insomnia.
“Whole fruits contain sugar, but the fibre in them slow the rate of absorption to help prevent spikes in blood sugar,” says Gangwisch. “This suggests that the dietary culprit triggering the women’s insomnia was the highly processed foods that contain larger amounts of refined sugars that aren’t found naturally in food.”
Since most people, not just postmenopausal women, experience a rapid rise in blood sugar after eating refined carbohydrates, the authors suspect that these findings may also hold true in a broader population.
“Based on our findings, we would need randomized clinical trials to determine if a dietary intervention, focused on increasing the consumption of whole foods and complex carbohydrates, could be used to prevent and treat insomnia,” says Gangwisch.
The researchers hypothesized that the rapid spikes and troughs in blood sugar after eating refined carbs may trigger insomnia.
Refined Carbs Triggered Insomnia
They found that the higher the dietary glycaemic index—particularly when fuelled by the consumption of added sugars and processed grains—the greater the risk of developing insomnia. They also discovered that women who consumed more vegetables and whole fruits (not juices) were less likely to develop insomnia.“Whole fruits contain sugar, but the fibre in them slow the rate of absorption to help prevent spikes in blood sugar,” says Gangwisch. “This suggests that the dietary culprit triggering the women’s insomnia was the highly processed foods that contain larger amounts of refined sugars that aren’t found naturally in food.”
Since most people, not just postmenopausal women, experience a rapid rise in blood sugar after eating refined carbohydrates, the authors suspect that these findings may also hold true in a broader population.
“Based on our findings, we would need randomized clinical trials to determine if a dietary intervention, focused on increasing the consumption of whole foods and complex carbohydrates, could be used to prevent and treat insomnia,” says Gangwisch.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)