Q. Some time ago, I read that a mother solved her child’s sleeping problem by giving him a banana to eat.
I did not pay attention to this until one day I decided to try it for myself. Lo and behold, it worked. I had a sound sleep all night.
Now I eat half a banana before I go to bed. I am not saying that this will work for everyone, but it worked for me.
A. We don’t know why eating half a banana before bed would work against insomnia. Perhaps the minerals (potassium and magnesium) in the fruit are helping, or maybe the slight carbohydrate boost at bedtime is beneficial.
We are sending you our Guide to Getting a Good Night’s Sleep with many other non-drug approaches to overcoming sleeplessness.
People are often advised not to snack late in the evening to avoid nighttime reflux. MR commented:
“Eating anything before bed other than a piece of fruit (possibly with a little peanut butter) makes me very restless and unable to sleep well. I take B12 daily and spirulina with dinner, both to increase melatonin production. A friend says that taking reishi mushroom extract early in the morning and a half hour before bed helps her. I also try to get to bed by 10:00 or 10:30, or else I often get a ‘second wind’ and can’t get to sleep for hours.”
Since bananas have been used as a remedy for heartburn, this approach should not pose a problem. Also remember the remedy grandmothers used to offer small children having trouble getting to sleep: a cup of warm milk with a bit of honey in it. People who can’t handle lactose will have to skip it, but if milk doesn’t cause digestive upset, this remedy can be quite comforting.
