2006-04-27
Connie Midey - The Arizona Republic

You've taken a warm bath, misted your pillowcase with lavender and shunned bedtime computer use. Still, sleep remains elusive.

Maybe it's time to change your eating habits.

Certain foods - consumed in the right amounts and combinations and at the right times - can lull you to sleep, says nutritionist Sue Ayersman of Kronos Optimal Health Centre in Phoenix.

She'll discuss sleep-enhancing foods and a chef will cook samples in a free class May 10 at the center.

"Think of comfort foods," Ayersman says, but within limits. Eaten too often and in large portions, typical comfort foods can contribute unwanted calories and unhealthful ingredients to the diet and make you too stuffed to sleep peacefully.

Janet Jensen, a retired registered nurse, gets out of bed and reaches for milk or cocoa and a book when she has trouble sleeping.

"Something happens when you get older," says Jensen, 72, of Phoenix, who for years woke every two hours during the night and started her days exhausted.

For one, she says, "your body doesn't absorb nutrients as well." Drinking milk or cocoa at bedtime boosts your intake of sleep-inducing tryptophan when you need it most.

Ayersman says tryptophan is one of several amino acids, the building blocks of protein. It's found in dairy products, poultry and other foods.

"Tryptophan is converted in the brain to serotonin, the 'feel good' hormone," she says.

Serotonin is a neurotransmitter, or chemical messenger, that promotes relaxation.

Because the stimulating effects of other amino acids compete with the calming effects of tryptophan, Ayersman advises eating a tryptophan-rich food such as turkey or cheese with whole-grain bread or another complex carbohydrate.

"Carbohydrates increase insulin production in the body and basically neutralize the other amino acids," she says. "Tryptophan is insensitive to insulin, so it's freed up to enter the brain and allow a better effect for sleep."

This makes high-fiber cereal with milk and half a banana a good evening snack for people who have trouble sleeping, she says. Creamy broccoli soup, one of three dishes to be prepared during the class by chef Mary Crowe of Dinners in a Dash, Parties in a Pinch, is another good choice. (Crowe also will cook pasta with low-fat, high-protein cream sauce; and chicken and corn tortilla casserole with green chiles.)

Or try chamomile tea or another warm, non-caffeinated beverage to make you drowsy.

But forget sugary bedtime treats such as doughnuts.

"Simple sugars create mood swings, a spike in blood sugar and then a drop," Ayersman says. "And low blood sugar can wake a person up in the middle of the night."

Jensen's sleeplessness occurs less often since she was diagnosed with insomnia, sleep apnea and restless leg syndrome and began treatment. But when it does happen, a cup of hot cocoa still can set things right.

"When it comes down to it," she says, "self-care is very, very important."

Reach the reporter at connie. midey@arizonarepublic.com or (602) 444-8120.