If you struggle to sleep at night, it might be because you’re eating the wrong foods while one particular common snack could be hiding a dose of caffeine.
Caffeine is a substance that is often found in coffee, tea, and energy drinks, with its primary effect being to stimulate the brain and nervous system, thus keeping us awake for longer. Because of this, the NHS generally advises avoiding stimulants such as caffeine at least two hours before going to bed.
However, caffeine can stay in the body for up to five hours so it may be better to avoid way before you plan on going to sleep. While it’s easy to avoid drinking caffeinated drinks such as tea or coffee before bed, it’s also advisable that you avoid caffeinated foods.
One surprising food in particular that contains caffeine is chocolate. This common snack can be found in a wide array of food and drinks, so think twice before reaching for that pint of chocolate ice cream before going to sleep.
Furthermore, different types of chocolate contain varying amounts of caffeine. For example, dark chocolate has the highest caffeine content, with 43mg per 100g while milk chocolate contains 20mg per 100g and white chocolate with 0g of caffeine per 100g.
For reference, this is almost as much as an average cup of coffee which contains more than 94g of caffeine. However, caffeine is not the only substance in chocolate that could be stopping you from getting a good night’s sleep.
Theobromine is another stimulant which gives dark chocolate its signature bitter taste and while chocolate lovers will be a big fan of this, it could also contribute to keeping you awake alongside the caffeine. Similar to caffeine content, dark chocolate contains the most theobromine due to containing more cocoa solids, while milk chocolate will have less and white chocolate having none.
How much caffeine should I have each day?
The NHS advises limiting caffeine intake to less than 600mg a day – if you find you’re particularly sensitive to caffeine you may want to limit this even further. Excessive consumption can result in restlessness, anxiety, sleeplessness, agitation, palpitations, and diarrhoea. Furthermore, a 2013 study of 12 people discovered that consuming 400mg of caffeine up to six hours before bed resulted in a disrupted sleep and even saw a reduction of total sleep time by one hour.
Other food and drinks to avoid before going to bed
A wide range of foods and drink contain caffeine which you may to avoid in order to get a good night’s sleep. This includes:
- Coffee (even decaf still contains a small amount of caffeine)
- Tea (including green tea)
- Energy drinks
- Kola nuts
- Cocoa beans
- Guarana
- Some chewing gums
- Yerba Mate
Always check the label of the food or drink you purchase to see if caffeine is included in the ingredients list.