why curd induces sleep?
- Curd (or) yogurt contains plenty of tryptophan that can induce sleep effectively.
- Eating at least 3 cups of curd/yogurt every day can therefore help you sleep peacefully at night.
- Make sure you opt for the sugarless (or low sugar) varieties as those with high sugar content would cause a sudden spike in the blood sugar levels which would in turn counteract the effects of the tryptophan.
- Also choose yogurts that don’t contain too much protein as these can energize your brain and make you wake up instead of helping you sleep.
- Tryptophan is an amino acid that promotes sleep and is found in small amounts in all protein foods.
- It is a precursor to the sleep-inducing compounds serotonin (a neurotransmitter), and melatonin (a hormone) which also acts as a neurotransmitter).
- Thus, for tryptophan to have a sedative effect, it needs to enter the brain by crossing the blood-brain barrier. Additionally, since tryptophan uses the same transport system as other amino acids, it has to compete against them to enter the brain
- An effective way of promoting relaxation is to consume protein foods such as milk or milk products together with a carbohydrate food.
- Although eating protein foods alone is unlikely to effectively induce sleep due to their insufficient tryptophan content, eating carbohydrates and protein in the same meal makes tryptophan more available to the brain.
- A large meal, especially one rich in carbohydrates, stimulates the release of insulin. This promotes the clearance of other amino acids from the bloodstream and facilitates the entry of tryptophan into the brain, where it can act to produce a sedating effect.
- On the other hand, some studies suggest that α-lactalbumin, a milk protein with a high tryptophan content, may also lead to improved sleep through an increase in the ratio of tryptophan to other amino acids in the blood.3,4,5 However, these studies looked at α-lactalbumin as a supplement to meals, meaning that more evidence is needed for a definite conclusion.
- Consuming milk or milk products alone is probably not going to induce drowsiness or sleepiness, because milk in itself does not contain a sufficient amount of tryptophan. Hence, milk and milk products can be consumed at any time of the day. Nonetheless, milk coupled with a carbohydrate food at bedtime can be a potential sleep aid. In addition, not only can this food choice be a soothing way to end the day and have a good night’s sleep, but it can also help people meet the recommended 2 to 4 servings of Milk and Alternatives they need each day, depending on their age group.
360 Content and Recruitment Marketing Specialist at Qualitest India
8yThank You for the informative write up :)