Maggie Moon’s first healthy midnight snack suggestion is a ¼ cup of walnuts mixed with chopped kiwi. As a staple of the sleep-friendly Mediterranean diet, walnuts contain both melatonin and magnesium, two sleep-promoting nutrients. Citing a recent 2021 study published in the Annual Review of Nutrition, Moon tells us, “Walnuts and kiwi both contain serotonin, too, which that same study suggests may improve quantity and quality of sleep and better daytime functioning.”
If you’re not a fan of nuts, however, Moon alternatively suggests ½ cup of Greek yogurt with a squeeze of honey on top. Greek yogurt is fermented dairy that houses a protein known to boost levels of tryptophan in the brain, which plays a role in melatonin production. Moon states that some research suggests eating Greek yogurt may even be superior to drinking regular milk to enhance sleep. But Greek yogurt is only one half of the equation; honey is the other. All that golden, ooey-gooey goodness provides us with carbs to boost the amount of tryptophan making its way across the blood-brain barrier. In fact, Moon states that some research has found links between drinking milk with honey and improved quality of sleep.
