Eating more fruits and vegetables linked to surprising effect on sleep

Your daily meal selections could influence the quality of your sleep, new research says.

A study from the University of Chicago Medicine and Columbia University found that increasing your intake of fruits and vegetables could help promote more restful sleep.

Previous research has shown that people who lack quality sleep may be more likely to indulge in unhealthy foods that are high in fat and sugar — and now this new finding sheds more light on how consumed foods impact sleep.

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In the small study — which was published in "Sleep Health: The Journal of the National Sleep Foundation" — 34 healthy young adults reported their daily food consumption and wore a tracker to measure how often they woke up or changed sleep patterns during the night, according to a press release.

Those who reported eating more fruits and vegetables during the day were found to have "deeper, more uninterrupted sleep." 

A study from the University of Chicago Medicine and Columbia University found that increasing your intake of fruits and vegetables could help promote more restful sleep. (iStock)

Greater amounts of healthy carbohydrates, like whole grains, were found to have that same benefit, the study found.

"Dietary modifications could be a new, natural and cost-effective approach to achieve better sleep," said co-senior author Esra Tasali, MD, director of the UChicago Sleep Center, in the release. 

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"The temporal associations and objectively-measured outcomes in this study represent crucial steps toward filling a gap in important public health knowledge."

Based on the study findings, the researchers concluded that people who eat at least five cups of fruits and veggies per day could have a 16% increase in quality of sleep compared to those who eat none of those foods.

"Small changes can impact sleep. That is empowering — better rest is within your control."

"16 percent is a highly significant difference," Tasali said in the release. "It’s remarkable that such a meaningful change could be observed within less than 24 hours."

"Based on current data, the experts confidently advise that regularly eating a diet rich in complex carbohydrates, fruits and vegetables is best for long-term sleep health," the release stated.

Those who reported eating more fruits and vegetables during the day were found to have "deeper, more uninterrupted sleep."  (iStock)

The American Heart Association provides the following examples of fruit and veggie servings that equate to 1 cup of produce.

• 8 large strawberries
• 1 large bell pepper
• 1 medium potato
• 22 grapes
• 2 medium carrots or 12 baby carrots
• 1 medium apple, orange, pear, peach, grapefruit or nectarine

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Dr. Chelsie Rohrscheib, head sleep expert at Wesper in Michigan, said that most sleep professionals recognize that a healthy diet supports overall well-being, including sleep quality — "so the findings of this study are not entirely unexpected."

"However, it's important to note that this was a relatively small study composed primarily of young adult male participants, which limits generalizability," Rohrscheib, who was not involved in the study, told Fox News Digital.  

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"While the results were statistically significant, the overall reduction in sleep fragmentation was modest, about 16%."

The study was also observational in nature, she noted, which means it lacked the control of a randomized trial. 

"Based on current data, the experts confidently advise that regularly eating a diet rich in complex carbohydrates, fruits and vegetables is best for long-term sleep health," the researchers wrote. (iStock)

"Ideally, future research would compare a group consuming a fruit- and vegetable-rich diet to a control group with limited intake to better establish causality," the doctor added.

The researchers plan to conduct more studies to confirm that eating produce causes better sleep and to determine the "underlying mechanisms of digestion, neurology and metabolism" driving this impact, the release stated.

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"People are always asking me if there are things they can eat that will help them sleep better," said co-senior author Marie-Pierre St-Onge, PhD, director of the Center of Excellence for Sleep & Circadian Research at Columbia, in the release. 

"Small changes can impact sleep. That is empowering — better rest is within your control."