What to avoid eating in the evening to get a good night’s sleep, according to a nutritionist

Are you having a good night’s sleep? According to an Ipsos survey, produced in collaboration with the “Parlons Literie” collective, and published in March 2023, 63% of French people say they sleep poorly. While certain causes such as lack of physical activity, stress or excessive exposure to screens may seem obvious, others seem to lie in diet. For Arnaud Cocaul, nutritionist doctor, interviewed by West France : « LPeople with sleep disorders often have a diet that is too rich. According to him, good digestion would be “pperfect for a good sleep “. Certain foods should therefore be banned at dinner.

Arnaud Cocaul begins by naturally pointing out fatty foods such as burgers, fries, pizzas, fried chicken… but also ice cream, candy or chocolate generally eaten in front of the television: “ Fatty foods promote gastroesophageal reflux and cause painful burning in the throat, as well as acid jets rising into the mouth. », Warns the nutritionist.

To get a better night’s sleep, the specialist also recommends avoiding overly spicy dishes which could accentuate this famous stomach acid reflux and thus disrupt sleep. “ Eating spicy or fatty dishes slows down emptying of the stomach and causes digestive discomfort, which can appear in the middle of the night. “, he specifies. A disorder that can trigger a sudden awakening and turn out to be “ be extremely unpleasant and tiring ».

Stimulants such as coffee, alcohol and energy drinks are also very discouraged because they “ accelerate the heart rate and considerably disrupt the phases of sleep “. Also note that cheese should be avoided in the evening as it is likely to cause digestive difficulties.