The last thing on anybody’s wishlist is to wake up in the middle of the night for a trip to the bathroom, because they’re dealing with a running stomach, suffering muscle cramp, or simply cannot fall asleep!
Ouch! That hurts, but it’s a scary reality to deal with especially when you normalise eating certain kinds of food at night— bananas excluded though.
You can eat bananas at night without having any side effects. In fact, research seems to point out some really good health benefits of snacking up bananas late at night. Some research suggests that eating bananas at night helps with sleep by providing the necessary minerals and compounds to aid it, while others claim bananas give the feeling of satiation which suppresses the chances of you waking up at night to grab something to eat.
Below, we explore the impressive qualities of eating bananas at night based on scientific studies out there, and to conclude, we give a brief list of food items that are not recommended to be consumed at night.
If anything, eating banana at night can be helpful
There is much evidence and research to suggest that eating bananas at night is beneficial.
And the good news is, till now, the contrary hasn’t been established yet, meaning that snacking up bananas late at night havent been linked to any negative side effects.
Here are the potential benefits of eating banana fruit at night.
It helps with sleep:
Bananas can help with sleep through many different ways, for example, the potassium in them can act as a muscle relaxant by creating a balancing with sodium content in the body thereby reducing the chances of sleep disruption caused by cramp.
The 8 percent daily value of magnesium contained in bananas can also enhance sleep in many ways.
First, through boosting low levels of magnesium in the body which is linked with short bursts of sleep (< 5 hours), secondly, through increasing the production of a compound known as melatonin which reduces the time it takes an individual to fall asleep and also helps individuals adhere to better sleep patterns.
Thirdly, through reducing the levels of cortisol which subsequently reduces stress, among many other ways.
Tryptophan in banana fruits also promotes good sleep through increasing sleeping time and making it less difficult for you to fall asleep.
There are other ways that eating bananas have been linked with good sleep like through the carbs in them, the potassium, through butyrate which are short-chain fatty acids that are known to reduce inflammation of the intestine and promote its functioning which results in better sleep for people with chronic intestinal inflammation, and even through the magnesium but in other ways.
It gives the feeling of satiation
Again, this is still tied with getting a good sleep. Because bananas are so rich in pectin which is a soluble fiber that promotes the feeling of satiation, consuming them at night will reduce the chances of waking up at night because of hunger. So in this way, eating bananas enhances sleep.
How many bananas should you eat at night?
Because you’ve got the green light to eat bananas at night doesn’t mean you should go overboard with it. Don’t eat too many bananas but rather, commit yourself to no more than 3 bananas a day.
That’s how to ensure no offset in balance of compounds and minerals occurs inside your body, which can lead to terrible consequences like nutrient deficiencies.
Can you eat banana with the peels?
If you’re snacking on bananas late at night, feel free to add the peels as part of the mix. They contain fiber that also promote the feeling of satiation and polyphenols that can prevent cardiovascular diseases as well as cancer.
Many other benefits of banana peels exist which are too good to neglect by throwing away the peels, but when next you’re considering eating the peels, ensure to wash them thoroughly to rid them off chemicals and pesticides and if possible, make sure they’re organically grown, so no chemicals are used on them in the first place.
How to eat bananas at night
- Eat them as they are
- Blend them into smoothies.
- Mix them as part of salad
- Add the peels into smoothies.
What foods to avoid eating at night
Heavy foods
Consuming heavy foods at night increases the chances of getting indigestion which can disrupt sleep. Heavy foods include
Foods with lots of water in them
Foods with a lot of water in them will make you want to go to the bathroom, and if you know what that means, it disrupts your sleep which can affect you in many ways.
Caffeine and foods with caffeine
Caffeine inhibits sleep in some individuals, so consuming caffeine based foods especially when you’re sensitive to it can disrupt your sleep. So avoid tea, soda, coffee, and any other food having caffeine in it.
Final Thoughts
Bananas are perfectly safe to consume at night. They aid with sleep by reducing stress, the time it takes one to fall asleep, the effort required to fall asleep and also prevent you from waking up in the middle of the night because of hunger by giving your stomach the feeling of satiation.
