Should You Drink Milk Before Bed?

Milk does the body good – but does it help you sleep?

Growing up, mom always poured a glass of milk at dinner, saying sweet dreams will come our way that night. Cereal, milkshakes and other calcium-enriched products contain milk and they do our bodies good in so many ways. But does milk really deliver better sleep (and sweeter dreams)?

Think about all the times you consume milk – is bedtime one of those times? Do you pour a glass of milk before bed thinking you’ll get better sleep? Or do you hate the taste and fight drinking milk out of a glass?

We were prepping for bed when all these calcium-filled questions filled our thoughts. Here’s what we learned.

Why Mom was right about drinking milk before bed

Turns out Mom was right about drinking milk before bed, especially if you struggle falling asleep. Milk and other dairy products contain an amino acid (which help induce sleep) known as tryptophan. Milk also contains melatonin, a hormone that regulates the sleep-wake cycle. If you’re stressed and can’t seem to get your zzz’s, a full glass of milk might be the trick to keeping that 8 hour sleep routine.

We know why milk is good for our body before snoozing but is there a type of milk we should be drinking?

If you’ve tried warm milk before bed and can’t see an affect, the cow that produced the milk may have been milked at the wrong time of day. Night milk is milk taken from cows at – you guessed it – night. Before you call your local milk company and ask if they milk cows at dusk, let’s discuss a recent Korean study. It seems feeding mice night milk reduced anxiety and increased sleep time. Granted, night milk has not been tested on humans with sleep disorders. Good luck finding night milk if you don’t own a cow.

Alternatives to a glass of bedtime milk

Not everyone likes drinking milk before bed or maybe you follow a vegan diet. Don’t fret, there are several tasty alternatives for you. Coconut milk, almond milk and nut milk are all natural and delicious. These milks have similar effects of cow’s milk and are known to help with getting your sleep on.

So what do you think? Ready to take up drinking milk again before bed?

Rest well & wake up ready to go!

Better sleep gives rise to better mornings, bringing your goals into focus and dreams within reach. Hungry for more sleep info? Dig into these posts:

• Dietician-approved bedtime snacks
• Why sleep is a powerful weapon against the flu
• Proven mind tricks to soothe anxiety and help you sleep better