As one of the most popular diets today, the ketogenic diet is not without some controversies. For one, some studies suggest that keto diets can disrupt your sleep and even lead to insomnia.
How a keto diet affects sleep
A keto diet is a very low-carb, high-fat diet that aims to put your body into a metabolic state called “ketosis.” When you enter ketosis, your body becomes efficient at burning fat for energy, turning it into ketones in the liver. As you eat significantly fewer carbs, your body’s preferred source of energy switches from glucose to fats.
So how does a keto diet affect sleep? Going into ketosis can be a big shift for your body and cause short-term symptoms like headaches and muscle aches. Sometimes called “keto flu,” this set of symptoms can leave you tossing and turning all night, thereby interrupting your sleep.
A keto diet can also cause temporary digestive issues as your body adjusts to all the added fat that you’re eating. High-fat diets commonly cause side effects like bloating, flatulence and diarrhea that leave uncomfortable sensations. If you plan to follow a plant-based approach to keto, the fiber in your diet may also cause your body to produce excess gas.
In other cases, keto foods themselves are the problem. Bulletproof coffee, for example, is a staple in many keto diets and is loaded with caffeine. Moreover, some supplements taken as part of a keto diet, such as collagen and MCT oil, can boost energy so much so that they leave you restless at night.
Cutting back on carbs can also interfere with sleep. That’s because carbs increase levels of the amino acid tryptophan in your brain, which contributes to the production of the sleep hormone melatonin. Studies also show that people with sleep disorders like insomnia and sleep apnea tend to consume fewer carbs than people with these disorders.
Should you forego going keto?
If you’re keen on losing weight and experiencing the benefits of going keto, then you might want to give the keto diet a second look. While many reports link a keto diet to sleep issues, there are also studies that suggest it can help you sleep better.
A study involving children with therapy-resistant epilepsy shows that following a keto diet decreases daytime sleepiness and extends REM sleep. Short for “rapid eye movement,” REM sleep is a phase of sleep in which dreams appear.
Some emerging research also shows that keto diets promote adenosine activity by helping relax the nervous system and reducing pain and inflammation, all of which can help improve sleep quality.
Adenosine is a naturally occurring chemical that plays an important role in sleep regulation. Your body’s adenosine levels build up throughout the day, causing you to feel sleepy as the day drags on.
How to go keto and prevent insomnia
Here are a few tips to prevent insomnia as you transition to a keto diet:
Choose your carbs wisely
Diets affect you differently depending on our lifestyle and eating habits. Whereas some people on a keto diet experience difficulty sleeping, you may not share the same experience due to the quality of carbs they ate before and after going keto.
Many studies also show that eating whole, fiber-rich sources of carbs instead of sugars and processed starches are linked to better sleep. As such, the effects of shifting from a high-carb to a low-carb diet may depend heavily on the types of carbs you’ve been eating and will retain for your new regimen.
Avoid eating late at night
When you eat is just important as what you eat. If you plan to incorporate coffee and other caffeinated drinks into a keto diet, then it would be wise if you sip these early in the morning instead of late in the afternoon or at night.
Eating close to bedtime can also cause digestive issues. This is because you’re not giving your body enough time to digest what you ate before lying down. This, in turn, can cause symptoms of acid reflux such as chest discomfort and a bitter taste in your mouth, which can keep you awake at night.
To avoid any sleep disturbances, wait for at least three hours before lying down. This allows your body to digest food and the contents of your stomach to move into your intestines.
It’s important to note that any change to your diet can alter your sleep. Changing what and when you eat can affect your circadian rhythms, your gut health, energy levels, even the hormones and chemicals in your body that make you feel sleepy or alert.
This is to say that if you’re starting on a new diet, you should anticipate some changes to how well you sleep. The good thing is that the side effects of a keto diet are only temporary. Once your body has adjusted, you’ll be back to sleeping normally in no time.
For more on keto and other diets, visit Slender.news.
Sources:
PsychologyToday.com
Healthline.com
LiveStrong.com
OnlineLibrary.Wiley.com
VeryWellHealth.com
