By Dean L. Jones<\/p>\n
Millions of people suffer from a sleep disorder depriving them from useful rest, which is something that can directly pose serious health risks.\u00a0 Destructively, many of those who suffer from sleep deprivation seek remedy from taking a sleep aid drug.\u00a0 However, drugs are unpredictable as the chemical composition scarcely attempts to slow down the nervous system by randomly changing neurotransmitters in the brain.\u00a0 As such, these sleep aids usually work just enough to help in falling asleep for a short period, only to wake up later being unable to fall back to sleep.\u00a0 In that case, when you wake up early you sometimes tend to eat, drink or smoke bringing on another set of potential problems.<\/p>\n
The good news is that sleeping through the night comes a lot easier when you make a habit of eating fresh fruits and vegetables.\u00a0 It is not just the fiber or the antioxidants, but scientific studies have shown that by consuming two glasses of diluted tart cherry juice will help add 39 minutes of deep, refreshing sleep.\u00a0 Sounds simple, but the natural sugars contained in fruits and vegetables get the job done and much safer than drugs.\u00a0 Seeing as, natural items like tart cherries contain\u00a0melatonin, a naturally occurring hormone, thereby consuming it helps regulate sleep cycles.\u00a0 Although, fruit drinks are readily available in many grocery stores, watch out for some brands that add high fructose corn syrup and\/or other processed sugars which defeat the purpose of consuming it, so stay SugarAlert!<\/p>\n
Anecdotally, my grandmother lived to a healthy 104 years of age and she coincidentally was a huge believer in eating watermelon to help prevent hardening of the arteries.\u00a0 I have no idea if regularly eating watermelon helped her to live a long life, but just in case I had no problem making it my favorite fresh fruit to regularly eat.\u00a0 If tart cherries and watermelon do not sound exciting enough, walnuts are a good source of tryptophan, a sleep-enhancing amino acid that helps make serotonin and melatonin, which are the \u201cbody clock\u201d hormone that sets our sleep-wake cycles.\u00a0 In the same way, almonds are rich in magnesium, a mineral needed for quality sleep.<\/p>\n
Even eating a salad with dinner can speed up bedtime, since lettuce contains lactucarium that contains sedative like properties and affects the brain similarly to opium.\u00a0 Do not stop there, bananas are a natural sleeping aid in that they contain melatonin and tryptophan (which converts to serotonin)\u00a0to help a person fall asleep.\u00a0 Pure honey can promote relaxation and help ease you to sleep at night because as a natural sugar it raises insulin slightly and allows tryptophan to enter the brain more easily.\u00a0 Merely by taking a spoonful of honey (hopefully there is no allergy to honey) before bed will bring about a natural force of sleep simplicity.<\/p>\n