Sweet (And Salty) Dreams

On any given morning, a paltry 15 percent of us wake up feeling well rested. Now there’s a counter-intuitive way to boost that number and, blissfully, it involves snacking

- Karen Ansel

To sleep more soundly, turn off Trevor Noah, hit the sack earlier, avoid blue screens and... Eat before bed? Yes, it goes against every old wives’ tale (and conventional wisdom), but research reveals that night-time nibbling can help you sleep better. Strategic nighttime nibbling, that is – or what we at WH have dubbed “sleepy snacks” (cute, huh?). “There are specific nutrients that may help you fall asleep and rest more soundly all night long, especially if you don’t always eat well during the day,” says nutritionist Elizabeth Ward. The ground rules: number one, make sure your snack is actually snack-sized, about 630 to 830 kilojoules. Then ditch anything that might upset your stomach; likely offenders include hard-to-digest meat or cheese and heartburn-inducing citrus or spicy food. Finally, time it an hour or two before you turn in so the nutrients enter your system and start to work. The following tasty titbits tick the right boxes. Some come together in a couple of minutes, while others require merely breaking open a package – and all of them boast high levels of that precious vitamin Zzzz.