Everyone knows that eating before bed is bad for your health and sleep quality. In fact, drinking beverages before bed can also affect our sleep quality. People who have trouble falling asleep should definitely avoid these six types of drinks before bed.
These six types of drinks are not recommended before bed!
1. Alcoholic beverages
A small amount of alcohol can promote blood circulation and help you relax, and you may soon fall into a deep sleep due to the effects of acetaldehyde produced during alcohol metabolism. However, it has the opposite effect in the latter half of sleep, causing people to enter a state of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, making sleep gradually lighter, or even waking them up. While drinking for pleasure is one of life's great joys, it's still best to avoid alcohol before bed.
2. Herbal teas with a diuretic effect
Chrysanthemum family herbs like dandelion (or dandelion coffee) and chamomile, and herbs with anti-edema effects like juniper and Job's tears, all have a diuretic effect. To avoid waking up to use the bathroom, it's best not to drink them before bed.
3. Carbonated drinks
Most carbonated drinks are sweet beverages containing sugar. Since liquid sugar is absorbed quickly, blood sugar levels in the body rise rapidly. With high blood sugar, the body cannot enter a deep sleep state. Furthermore, some carbonated drinks also contain caffeine, so it's best to be cautious.
4. Coffee
Caffeine is a central nervous system stimulant. Drinking coffee before bed may keep you awake. However, because everyone's tolerance to caffeine is different, how much coffee affects sleep varies from person to person.
5. Health drinks
Many people choose to drink a health drink before bed to have good skin the next day. Although this won't negatively affect nutrient absorption, the caffeine in health drinks can have a significant impact on sleep. Caffeine not only excites the nervous system, making it hard to fall asleep, but it also has a diuretic effect. Even if a health drink has beauty benefits, once you are in a light sleep state, those benefits will be in vain.
6. Dark chocolate
Dark chocolate is not only high in calories but also contains a large amount of caffeine. A 44-gram bar of dark chocolate contains about 12 milligrams of caffeine, which is almost the same amount as in 10 grams of regular coffee. It's also important to know that theobromine in chocolate can also cause insomnia.