What food is bad in the evenings? 12 foods you shouldn't eat at night. Restrictions for evening meals, helpful tips.
Illegal food at night is food that doctors and nutritionists strongly recommend to exclude from the evening meal. Mostly the ladies are used to limiting themselves so that they do not have to struggle with extra pounds later. But there are 12 foods that should not be eaten at night for the reason that they are harmful to health and worsen sleep.
Red meat
As lean and healthy as red meat is, it is highly recommended to consume it during the day rather than eating it at night. The best time for a fresh steak is lunch. Moreover, the method of cooking meat is practically irrelevant. Although the most harm will come from a fried piece, still a boiled or baked dish is not much better.
Experts name three reasons why meat should not be served for dinner:
- The product is primarily known for its high levels of tyrosine. It is the most valuable amino acid vital for the body. However, in the evening, her arrival is inappropriate: it leads to a jump in the adrenaline level. So instead of calming down, there will be an arousal effect that will prevent you from falling asleep.
- Meat consists of protein, which requires a large and serious work from the body for full digestion. For this reason, instead of resting, the body will begin to work! Naturally, sleep will suffer from this.
- Some doctors warn that sleep apnea can occur from meat eaten before bed. This is a short-term pause in breathing, which sometimes goes unnoticed, but a person gets up in the morning completely overwhelmed. Due to the fact that during the night his ventilation stopped, the body suffered a lack of oxygen. Sometimes seizures are clearly felt at all: a person suffocates. If this is observed, naturally, meat should definitely not be eaten at night.
Smoked products and sausages
Such products in themselves are difficult to classify as useful. Of course, sometimes you want to pamper yourself with a sandwich with your favorite sausage or smoked meat. But if this is allowed, then certainly not in the evenings.
These overnight foods are also not recommended for several reasons. They, like meat, have a component that leads to arousal and even aggression. Therefore, a dinner with a piece of sausage or smoked meats will not allow you to fall asleep quickly and soundly.
Such food is also harmful due to the fact that it is difficult and long to digest. Moreover, unlike red meat in its pure form, it contains an excess of spices and a lot of fat. Accordingly, the processing will take even longer. So in the morning you will definitely not be able to get up with a clear head. If the goal is to keep fit, or even lose weight, it is definitely better not to gorge on sausages and smoked meats at night.
Chocolate
Favorite sweetness is also not without reason included in the list of foods that cannot be eaten at night. Despite the fact that many nutritionists just allow a little chocolate, preferably black, even if strict dietary restrictions are observed for the sake of losing weight. However, you can only afford a piece in the morning.
Chocolate is a source of fast carbohydrates and caffeine. It also contains theobromine, a relative of caffeine that stimulates the nervous system. Accordingly, the product contributes to a clear burst of energy. So, after eating, you will have to toil for a long time, trying to fall asleep.
However, with chocolate, not everything is so simple. The fact is that it also contains tryptophan. It is an essential amino acid that triggers the secretion of serotonin. It is also called "the hormone of happiness."So some experts do not see anything wrong with relieving stress at the end of a hard day by eating a small piece of chocolate. It is only important to limit yourself to the minimum dose to relax, and not start a new excitement!
Condiments and sauces
Horseradish, mustard, hot peppers, as well as any sauces based on such products, garlic … All that whet the appetite are foods that are undesirable at night when losing weight. First of all, precisely for the reason that it will be difficult to refrain from supplements with them. Putting a small portion of dinner on your plate and seasoning it with mustard, you will probably imperceptibly want to add more and more …
But that's not the only reason to skip savory supplements before bed. The fact is that all these products are also burning, which in itself invigorates. Therefore, you will probably not be able to quickly calm down and go to bed right after dinner. Or, in bed, you will have to remember for a long time the events that happened during the day, count the sheep - catch up with yourself a dream, whoever knows how.
There is another reason to forget about mustard and horseradish in the evening: these foods require a lot of activity of the gastrointestinal tract. It takes a long time to process (and if the sauces are eaten with red meat or even lighter protein, you need twice as much). After lunch, our body slowly slows down the rhythms, the activity of the gastrointestinal tract decreases. As a result, digestion is difficult. Unable to cope with spicy food, the stomach will report discomfort problems. Heartburn, dry mouth, and other discomfort will occur.
Tomatoes
It is difficult to imagine our menu without these bright colorful fruits! Moreover, they are also incredibly useful. Tomato is a real storehouse of vitamins and minerals. But only on condition that it is eaten correctly. One of the key restrictions: Tomatoes cannot be eaten in the evening.
But they seem completely harmless! Meanwhile, there are a number of reasons to refuse a dinner with such vegetables and even tomato sauces, dressings:
- This gift of nature has a pronounced diuretic effect. Therefore, having eaten a good portion of tomato salad for dinner, people toil. I can't fall asleep because I have to constantly run to the toilet.
- If you have even minor stomach problems, it is doubly important to give up tomatoes before bed. The point is that they affect acidity. Since the gastrointestinal tract calms down in the evening, activity slows down, and difficulties arise with the processing of tomatoes. Often because of this, heartburn is annoying, which is an alarming signal!
- Fresh tomatoes basically kick-start the stomach. That is, instead of tune in to sleep and rest, the gastrointestinal tract begins to develop vigorous activity. At night, the organs simply need rest. Therefore, such processes are accompanied by a feeling of discomfort, fermentation.
- With stones in the gallbladder, tomatoes can even lead to a serious exacerbation if you eat them in the evening. Since they initiate the production of bile, cramping is possible. So, with gallstone disease, you shouldn't eat them before bed!
Naturally, a small tomato will not harm a healthy person. But if you really want to feel the taste of a tomato, then it is better to eat it not raw. Therefore, the ideal solution is to add some tomato sauce to your dinner.
Pickles
What you can't eat in the evening are pickles. Even if you really want your favorite cucumber pickled by your grandmother for a fish or chicken, it is better to stop. The same goes for tomatoes, zucchini, peppers - any vegetables, pickled or pickled.
Conservation can and should be postponed for another time of the day. It is on the list of prohibited foods for several reasons:
- Marinades, brine lead to stagnation of fluid in the body. They contain an abundance of salt, which retains water. This is completely unnecessary at night. The overuse of pickles in the evening can even seriously disrupt kidney function. True, more often it makes itself felt with swelling, which is also very unpleasant.
- Pickles are appetite provocateurs! It is impossible to argue with this. When there is a jar of crispy cucumbers on the table, you want to get a fried chicken leg for them, you can also have a piece of lard with garlic. And there a hand will reach for a glass! And, instead of giving dinner to the enemy, as the wise people advise, there is a high probability of eating everything that is left in the refrigerator.
Cottage cheese
And not only cottage cheese - any dairy products are best consumed during the day, not in the evening. True, there is no consensus about cottage cheese. Some nutritionists argue that pure protein will not harm you. Indeed, 5% cottage cheese contains only 121 kcal (per 100 g). As for why dairy products in general should not be eaten at night, questions usually rarely arise.
And yet, let's sort it out in order. Indeed, any milk can do harm if you eat it for dinner. First of all, animal protein, even from milk or fermented baked milk, is still a burden for the digestive system. If the gastrointestinal tract has increased sensitivity (not to mention lactose intolerance), this is fraught with bloating, gurgling, and other unpleasant symptoms. In addition, those who are losing weight should remember about the so-called milk sugar. Yes, yes, and he can turn into extra pounds, especially if there is too much of it in a portion.
And now we return to cottage cheese. Why is it not as harmless as it seems, so it is better to include it in the list of foods that should not be eaten before bed? It has a high insulin index: it reaches 120. This means that as the curd enters the stomach and as it is processed, the level of insulin in the blood rises rapidly. And this is a signal for the brain: splitting must be stopped by starting the process of forming a fat depot.
If cottage cheese is eaten in the evenings, then only with a minimal percentage of fat. It is desirable that at least 2-3 hours remain before bedtime.
Cabbage and celery
In general, fresh vegetables are best enjoyed throughout the day. In the evening, if they are eaten, then cooked. Since such products without heat treatment require a lot of effort from the digestive tract to digest. The slightest deviations in the functioning of the stomach and intestines are fraught with bloating. But you should be especially careful to eat different types of cabbage, including broccoli, and celery.
Of course, these natural gifts are beneficial in and of themselves. However, they are also called by nutritionists one of the first when they make a list of what should not be eaten at night. Such fibers take a long time to digest. Vital fiber is metabolized with abundant gas. During the day it is not as critical as at night, when it is difficult to fall asleep, constantly tossing and turning due to the seething and feeling as if the stomach is bursting. So it's better to crunch fresh cabbage and celery for lunch.
Nuts
What other foods are advisable not to eat at night so as not to gain weight and harm your health? And again, very healthy food on our list: nuts are highly valued by nutritionists. They are extremely rich in a variety of nutrients, including oils. But one cannot fail to notice that the nuts are very fat because of this.
The number of calories in 100 g of the product can be up to 600-700 (depending on the type of nut). Of course, it is better not to eat such hearty food before bedtime. And it's not just that fat will be stored in the form of extra pounds. In general, nuts are processed and absorbed for a very long time. So it is better not to load the digestive tract with them in the evening.
Sweet fruit
It would seem that these are the best foods before bed! Light, low-fat, and if the fruit is chosen wisely, then it extinguishes the appetite well, and does not awaken it, unlike spices, many vegetables and pickles. But nutritionists think differently.
Of course, fruit is different. And first of all, those fruits that contain more sugar than others are included in the "black list":
- grape;
- apricot;
- peaches;
- watermelon;
- melon.
Even if it is natural sugar from fruits, it is still fast carbohydrates. So they definitely should not be consumed in the evenings if you do not want to gain extra pounds. And even more so, the fruit should be left for lunch, the maximum is an afternoon snack, when the goal is to lose weight.
In addition, if sugar is supplied to the body in the evenings, a burst of energy is guaranteed after a meal. And this is also not the effect that would be relevant before bedtime.
Separately, it is worth mentioning the diuretic effect. They are possessed by many fruits, for which their doctors even advise to eat more often - "to clean the kidneys." But, naturally, for an evening snack, such an effect on the body is rather a disadvantage than an advantage. Because you have to run to the toilet instead of relaxing and resting.
Bakery products
Sugar and white flour are a couple that help create real masterpieces in the oven. But as a result, they produce foods that cannot be eaten before bedtime.
At first, the body feels a burst of energy, because white bread, especially buns, is a supplier of fast carbohydrates. So to eat a fragrant crumpet and immediately fall asleep soundly will definitely not work.
A little later (after 2-2, 5 hours) we will feel the opposite effect - a strong feeling of hunger. It is explained by the fact that in response to the intake of sugar, the body releases insulin. Therefore, hypoglycemia occurs. Some people literally wake up in the middle of the night with a sensation of obvious hunger, the one they talk about - sucking in the stomach.
White fluffy buns only at first glance seem so delicate, easily digestible. In fact, because of sugar, yeast, a riot begins in the stomach - seething, fermentation. All these processes certainly do not contribute to sound and healthy sleep.
Fatty food
Someone would not even think of eating harmful foods at night. But sometimes even adherents of proper nutrition want to dine on fried potatoes. Or afford a greasy fish sandwich. However, it is this restriction that is extremely important to adhere not only for beauty, but also for health.
To understand why a fatty dinner is harmful, it is useful to get acquainted with the processes that take place in the body. For a quick fall asleep and quality sleep in the body, the temperature drops imperceptibly and slightly. Just 0.5-1 degrees, which we don't even feel. However, the quality of rest depends on this.
When a portion of fried potatoes, sprats in oil, or other tasty but fatty foods enter the stomach, it takes a lot of energy to process them. The body temperature does not drop, as it should before going to bed, but rises. Because of this, the production of melatonin is disrupted - the very hormone that is necessary for a person to be able to sleep soundly.
Naturally, this is not the only reason why you should refuse a fatty and hearty dinner. If you use such products at night, you will definitely not be able to lose weight - rather, on the contrary. It is also not good for health. After all, as already mentioned, at night the stomach and intestines are given rest, and not loaded with food, which requires active work from them.
What foods can not be eaten at night - watch the video:
In general, deciding what you can't eat before bed should be considered carefully. It is worth taking into account the state of your health. But the rule of not stuffing your stomach will hurt anyone, so that dinner is the lightest of all meals.
