Late-Night Eating? Beat It With Protein
For the global citizen of today, late-night eating has become an acceptable habit. However, this eating pattern can have significant effects on our bodies and overall health. Let’s explore the impact of late-night eating and its solutions.
What causes Late-Night Eating?
Snacking late into the night emerges from a number of factors which include inadequate eating during the day, poor sleeping habits, work shifts with erratic hours, stress, boredom, hormonal imbalances etc.
How does Late-Night Eating affect our health?
Our brain has a natural sleep-wake pattern called the Circadian rhythm which helps regulate several vital processes in the body like digestion, hormone production and metabolism.
When we consume food before bedtime, our bodies have less time to digest and metabolise the nutrients properly. This can cause digestive discomfort, indigestion and obesity. The discomfort of the stomach can also lead to difficulty in falling asleep and poor quality of sleep thereby disrupting our sleep patterns. Diabetes, cardiovascular issues and other health issues can be caused by poor sleep. Thus late-night eating disrupts Circadian rhythm and can severely affect our health and well being.
Let’s take a look at some ways in which we can overcome Late-Night Eating?
- Emotional management. Often negative emotions like feelings of stress, sadness, anger and boredom instigate comfort overeating. Taking a short walk around the house, talking to a friend or in more extreme cases seeking professional mental help are some ways to manage these emotions.
- A glass of water. People often mistake thirst with hunger. So try having a glass of water. A few sips usually removes the urge to eat.
- Proper Sleep. If you aren’t getting adequate sleep, it leaves your body feeling tired and craving carbohydrate-rich foods. Proper sleep will help solve this.
- Proper daytime eating. You may be overeating at night because you aren’t eating enough during the day, which leads to insatiable hunger in the evening. Data suggests that eating high-protein meals during the day may cull the need to eat at night in half. High protein foods like meat, nuts and cheese may reduce the need to overeat later in the day.
- Controlled night snacking. It’s okay to have a snack at night if you realise how much you’re eating. Your willpower and power of observation to not eat too much will prevent you from overeating. Also healthy snacks like certain cheeses or whole fruits like apples and pears are great to control your night cravings.
Beat Late Night Eating with Plant Protein
Plant proteins are derived from sources such as legumes, seeds, and whole grains, and are a fantastic option for late-night meals. Plant proteins are rich in amino acids, fibre, vitamins, and minerals, while having lower quantities of saturated fats and cholesterol. This makes them easier to digest and can prevent indigestion or discomfort.
Plant proteins also contain tryptophan, an amino acid precursor to serotonin and melatonin, neurotransmitters which are involved in regulating sleep and mood,
so consuming them can lead to a better sleep. Origin Nutrition’s Vegan proteins contain the essential amino acids that are not present in most other plant proteins. With great ease you can create light and healthy snacks to help with late night eating.
Late-night eating has a significant impact on our bodies and sleep quality. Proper sleep, adequate consumption of food during daytime and nutrient-dense, plant-based proteins which provide our bodies with the necessary fuel while supporting proper digestion and sleep are some of the methods to overcome late night eating are the key to your health and well being.
