When you stay up late, are you always ravenous? That feeling of emptiness in your stomach seems like it can't be filled with just a little bit of food. So, how should we eat when we stay up late? What should we eat, and what shouldn't we? Who is suitable for a late-night snack? Let's take a look at the article below!
These groups are suitable for eating after staying up late
People who work overtime: Some people have high work pressure and often work until one or two in the morning, which is six or seven hours after dinner. It is generally advisable to have a four to five-hour interval between meals. If the interval is too long, blood sugar can drop, which will also affect work efficiency.
The elderly: The digestive function of the elderly begins to decline, so it's not suitable to eat too much in one meal, but at the same time, they need to replenish enough nutrients in a timely manner. Therefore, the elderly should eat small, frequent meals and can have an appropriate late-night snack after dinner.
People who are thinner: Eating a small late-night snack at night is generally not a problem; however, those with a medium build or who are already overweight should focus on controlling their nighttime food intake, especially their energy intake.
Blacklist of late-night snack foods
Avoid foods high in fat, such as instant noodles, flaky pastries, and meat products. They are digested slowly, delay gastric emptying, and may even affect your appetite for breakfast the next day.
Avoid fried, grilled, and pan-fried foods. Examples like fried peanuts and grilled lamb skewers can have an adverse effect on the gastric mucosa.
Fruit intake at night should also be moderate. Especially avoid fruits with high sugar content, as they may cause you to wake up at night and affect sleep quality.
Avoid overly salty things. Besides making you drink water continuously, it also makes it difficult for your body to expel water, which affects sleep and can easily lead to facial swelling the next day.
Avoid drinking large amounts of coffee and strong tea with late-night snacks. They both stimulate the sympathetic nervous system and can easily cause autonomic nerve disorders in internal organs.
Good foods for staying up late that you can keep on hand
When staying up late, it's a good idea to prepare some foods like bread, cakes, cookies, and chocolate. Eating them with a drink or hot congee can quickly restore your energy and body heat.
At the same time, you can also keep some nuts at home, such as walnuts, pistachios, white melon seeds, and raisins. These all have a good brain-boosting effect.
You can drink some black tea, which is good for the stomach; or drink some hot milk to supplement protein; and longan-infused water is also a great drink that can replenish sugar and calories in a timely manner.