September 12, 2017 · Written by Foodtolive Team

5 Worst Foods to Eat at Night, or How to Binge in a Good Way

Avoiding nightly binges is sometimes not possible. So, everyone needs to know what the worst foods to eat at night are. The best thing you can do is minimize the damage. If you have to eat late at night due to your schedule, be sure to do it at the same time every day. This will reduce the stress on your body.

5 Worst Foods to Eat at Night: For Vegans

 

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1.  Spicy dishes

4 Spicy Foods Benefits or Why You Should Eat Spicy Foods

4 Spicy Foods Benefits or Why You Should Eat Spicy Foods

While there are many spicy food benefits, eating spicy dishes late in the day will prevent you from falling asleep. Even flavoring your otherwise ‘good’ late dinner with some tabasco will affect your chances of getting a good rest.

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2. Legumes
Legumes are rich in protein and fiber. They also have starch that makes them digest slowly. That’s why you should never eat them late at night as your body will focus on digesting. This might not prevent you from actually falling asleep, but it will reduce the level of your relaxation.

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3. Sugary cereals
Eating a healthy cereal for breakfast is a good way to get energy for the day. This food is also ‘light’ enough to consume late in the day. However, the majority of cereals in stores contain lots of sugar, which makes them the worst foods to eat at night. This product will cause a blood sugar spike that won’t let you relax. Even if you manage to sleep, you’ll wake up early and hungry.

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4. French fries & junk food
Vegans don’t have to worry about greasy burgers and bacon. However, high-fat veggie foods are just as bad for you to eat at night. They take a long time to digest, so your body will be working to digest the food while you are sleeping and you’ll wake up tired. It’s the same for pizzas and any other fatty foods.

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5. Chocolate

How to Enjoy Healthy Vegan Chocolate on a Diet

How to Enjoy Healthy Vegan Chocolate on a Diet

Even healthy vegan chocolate is one of the worst foods to eat at night. It contains cacao powder, which is what makes the food so good for your health in general. However, along with nutrients and antioxidants, cacao also contains caffeine. Chocolate also contains sugar and fats, which are two other ‘very bad for sleep’ ingredients.

Are There Good Foods to Eat at Night

While night binges never are good, there are some foods that are a better choice if you do eat late at night. As you can see, all the worst foods to eat at night are bad because they prevent you from falling asleep or relaxing fully. The foods that have an opposite effect include: 

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  • Pumpkin seeds
    Pumpkin seeds contain tryptophan, an amino acid that helps you fall asleep.

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  • Cherries
    Cherries are a natural source of melatonin, a hormone that promotes relaxing sleep.

 

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  • Avocado
    Late-night guacamole (in moderation) can help you relax as avocados are rich in magnesium. All foods that contain lots of this mineral without extra calories, fat, sugar, and protein are good for nightly binges.

Eating at night is hard on your body no matter what. Therefore, you shouldn’t use the aforementioned list of products as some sort of permission to stuff yourself at midnight. Instead, do your best to maintain a healthy eating schedule. Only eat those foods in those rare cases when it’s not possible to avoid eating late at night.