Video above: In the movie Fight Club, Edward Norton’s character explains the pains and stresses of dealing with insomnia.
I dealt with insomnia for several years and it was, pun intended, a total nightmare. I was constantly irritable, exhausted, anxiety-ridden, and felt like I was performing only at a fraction of what I was really capable of. My ability to sleep drastically improved once I started practicing good sleeping habits (also known as sleep hygiene), cleaned up my diet, and committed to exercising every single day.
However, I still experienced sleeplessness more often than I liked. I don’t like relying on pills or OTC medicines since most of them leave me groggy and hungover the next day. And while there are several food-based methods that can help alleviate insomnia, there’s one sure-fire method that works for me every night, without fail.
Almonds Will Help You Get Your Zzzs
If, like me, you’re the type of person who gets into bed and just can’t fall asleep or get a truly restful deep night of sleep no matter how active you were during the day, eat an ounce of almonds about half an hour before bedtime. Raw almonds are best, but lightly roasted and salted work fine, although they may make you thirsty.
A couple of tablespoons of pure almond butter will work, too, if you don’t have the whole nuts handy. I’ve heard almond milk will do in a pinch, but I haven’t tried it out. Almond milk has undergone a lot of processing unless you make it yourself, and I prefer to stick with the whole food. Hands down, having a pre-bedtime snack of almonds is the most reliable method I’ve found for relieving insomnia.
From top to bottom: shelled and unshelled almonds.
Almonds are little, er, almond-shaped nutritional powerhouses. One ounce, or about 23 whole kernels, have 76 mg of magnesium. (The general RDA is 300 mg/women and 400 mg/men, although it varies depending on age and pregnancy).
