Which foods keep you awake at night?

January 2, 2026 •

3 min read

According to a study, consuming caffeine even six hours before bed can reduce your total sleep time by up to one hour. Many people unknowingly sabotage their rest by eating and drinking things that interfere with the body’s natural sleep cycle.

Quick Summary

Certain foods and drinks, particularly those high in caffeine, sugar, fat, and spice, significantly impact sleep quality. This is due to their effects on hormones, blood sugar, and digestion. Adjusting late-night dietary choices can lead to a more restful night.

Key Points

Caffeine and Theobromine: Stimulants found in coffee, tea, and chocolate block sleep-promoting chemicals in the brain, keeping you alert for hours.
Fatty, Spicy, and Acidic Foods: These are difficult to digest and can trigger heartburn, indigestion, and an increased body temperature, causing physical discomfort that prevents sleep.
Sugar Overload: High-sugar foods cause blood sugar to spike and crash, releasing stress hormones that lead to restless sleep and middle-of-the-night awakenings.
Alcohol's Deceptive Role: While initially sedating, alcohol disrupts the sleep cycle and causes frequent awakenings as your body processes it.
Strategic Timing: Eating large meals close to bedtime forces your body to focus on digestion rather than rest. Aim to eat your last meal two to four hours before sleeping.
Tyramine Triggers: Aged cheeses and cured meats contain tyramine, which stimulates the brain and can make it harder to relax and fall asleep.

The Stimulants: Caffeine and Theobromine

Caffeine is the most recognized stimulant affecting sleep. It works by blocking adenosine, a neurotransmitter that promotes sleepiness, helping you feel alert. Found in coffee, tea, and soda, its effects can linger for several hours, depending on individual sensitivity and metabolism. For those with insomnia, it is particularly important to avoid caffeine late in the day.

Coffee and Tea: Not just a morning beverage, the caffeine in coffee and some teas (black, green, yerba mate) can disrupt your ability to fall and stay asleep.
Chocolate: Dark chocolate contains high levels of both caffeine and theobromine, another stimulant. The darker the chocolate, the higher the stimulant content.
Energy Drinks: These are packed with high amounts of caffeine and sugar, creating a powerful combination that is highly disruptive to sleep.

The Digestive Disruptors: Heavy, Fatty, Spicy, and Acidic Foods

Your body's digestion naturally slows down by up to 50 percent when you sleep. Consuming heavy meals or foods that are difficult to digest right before bed can cause discomfort and awakenings. This is why avoiding certain foods is crucial for restful sleep.

High-Fat and Fried Foods: Fatty meats, pizza, and fried items take a long time to digest and can trigger indigestion and acid reflux, especially when lying down. This can cause discomfort that makes it difficult to fall and stay asleep.
Spicy Foods: Ingredients like hot peppers contain capsaicin, which can increase your core body temperature. Since your body's temperature naturally drops to initiate sleep, this can interfere with the process. Spicy foods also frequently cause heartburn.
Acidic Foods: Items like tomatoes, citrus fruits, and onions can exacerbate acid reflux symptoms, which are often worsened by lying down.
Cruciferous Vegetables: Broccoli, cauliflower, and kale are high in fiber, which can cause gas and bloating in some people. This can lead to gastrointestinal discomfort that disturbs sleep.

The Sugar Rollercoaster: How Sweets Cause Insomnia

Foods high in added sugar, including sugary cereals, ice cream, and candy, can cause your blood sugar to spike and then crash. This rollercoaster effect triggers the release of stress hormones like adrenaline and cortisol, which can wake you up in the middle of the night. Over time, excessive sugar intake is also linked to chronic inflammation, which is known to interfere with sleep.

The Deceiving 'Nightcaps' and Tyramine:

Alcohol: While alcohol might seem to help you fall asleep initially due to its sedative effects, it significantly reduces the quality of your sleep later in the night. As the body metabolizes the alcohol, it can cause frequent awakenings and disrupt important REM sleep.
Aged and Cured Foods: Processed and aged cheeses, cured meats like salami, and fermented foods contain high levels of tyramine. This amino acid triggers the release of norepinephrine, a stimulant that can increase brain activity and make it harder to relax and fall asleep.

The Impact of Timing: When You Eat Matters

The timing of your meals is as important as the content. Eating a large meal less than two to three hours before bed can negatively impact sleep quality. This is because your body is still actively digesting, which can increase your metabolic rate and body temperature, creating conditions not conducive to sleep. Studies suggest that those who eat closer to bedtime are more likely to experience fragmented sleep and awakenings during the night.

Foods to Avoid vs. Better Alternatives Before Bed


Foods to Avoid	Better Alternatives
Coffee, Black & Green Tea	Herbal Tea (Chamomile, Lemon Balm)
Spicy Meals	Light, easily digestible meals
Fatty Foods (Pizza, Fried Food)	Whole-wheat toast or oatmeal
Sugary Snacks (Ice Cream, Candy)	A handful of almonds or walnuts
Alcohol	A glass of warm milk or tart cherry juice
Aged Cheeses, Cured Meats	Low-fat cottage cheese or yogurt
Acidic Fruits (Citrus, Tomatoes)	Bananas or kiwi

Conclusion

Making mindful dietary choices, especially in the hours before bed, can significantly improve your sleep quality. By reducing or eliminating caffeine, alcohol, high-fat, high-sugar, and spicy foods, you can prevent many common sleep disturbances caused by digestion issues and stimulating effects. Paying attention to meal timing, aiming to finish eating two to four hours before bed, is also a powerful tool for promoting rest. Replacing these sleep-disrupting foods with lighter, sleep-promoting alternatives like herbal teas, nuts, and complex carbohydrates can set the stage for a much more restorative night's sleep. Your diet is a critical component of overall sleep hygiene. For more resources on improving your nightly rest, visit the Sleep Foundation.

Frequently Asked Questions

Spicy foods can keep you awake for two main reasons: they can cause heartburn or indigestion, and the compound capsaicin can raise your body temperature, which interferes with the natural cooling process needed for sleep.

It is generally recommended to stop eating a large meal about two to four hours before bedtime. This allows your body enough time to properly digest the food and reduces the risk of sleep disturbances from indigestion or discomfort.

Yes, high sugar intake can disrupt sleep significantly. It causes blood sugar spikes and drops, which can trigger the release of stress hormones like cortisol and lead to frequent awakenings and restless, fragmented sleep.

While alcohol has initial sedative effects, it can fragment sleep and suppress important restorative sleep stages, like REM sleep, later in the night. As your body processes the alcohol, it can cause you to wake up more frequently.

Not all cheeses have the same effect. Aged or cured cheeses, like aged cheddar and parmesan, contain high levels of tyramine, a compound that can stimulate the brain. Lighter, low-fat dairy options like cottage cheese are typically not disruptive.

Digestion requires energy, and when you eat a large or heavy meal before bed, your body must divert resources to this process. This can raise your body temperature and metabolic rate, delaying sleep onset and causing restlessness.

While high-fiber foods are generally healthy, eating large quantities of certain fibrous vegetables like broccoli or legumes right before bed can cause gas and bloating in some people, leading to discomfort and interrupted sleep. It's best to consume these earlier in the day.