Many people have likely experienced this: tossing and turning in bed, unable to fall asleep, and then recalling a long-standing remedy for insomnia—counting sheep. One sheep, two sheep, three sheep; after counting hundreds of sheep, some people drift off to sleep, while others remain wide awake, even more alert than before they started counting. So, is counting sheep a reliable method for falling asleep? What can you do before bed to help you sleep?
The process of counting sheep involves a relatively focused attention span. For those who can't calm their minds and are plagued by chaotic thoughts, it’s a way to organize their thoughts and achieve a sense of calm, which can then lead to a pre-sleep state. Therefore, for people whose insomnia stems from these reasons, counting sheep can indeed be helpful. However, for others, counting sheep or numbers can keep their attention focused, causing their brains to remain active and making them even more alert. So, whether counting sheep is effective or not depends on the individual. What should you do if you can’t fall asleep? What activities before bed can help with sleep?
Professor Li Yan, the chief physician of the Psychological Sleep Department at Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, previously mentioned in an interview with Family Doctor Online that insomnia is somewhat related to food. Consuming certain sleep-inducing foods before bed can make it easier to fall asleep. Regarding pre-sleep foods, Professor Li Yan recommended the following:
Milk: Milk contains an essential amino acid called tryptophan, which can combat anxiety, prevent insomnia, and stabilize emotions. Drinking a glass of milk before bed provides enough tryptophan to promote sleep, and the feeling of fullness after drinking milk also has a sedative effect.
Millet: Among all grains, millet is the richest in tryptophan. It is also high in starch, which can create a sense of satiety and promote insulin secretion, increasing the amount of tryptophan that enters the brain.
Walnuts: Walnuts can help treat neurasthenia, insomnia, forgetfulness, excessive dreaming, and poor appetite. Therefore, eating an appropriate amount of walnut kernels in the morning and evening can aid sleep.
Longan: Longan meat not only nourishes the heart and spleen and replenishes blood, but it is also most effective in treating insomnia, forgetfulness, and neurasthenia, as it has a calming effect. In traditional Chinese medicine, the formula "Guipi Wan," which treats heart and spleen deficiency and insomnia, contains longan meat.
Lotus Seeds: Lotus seeds also have a calming effect on the heart and mind. For those who suffer from insomnia with excessive worrying and dreaming, lotus seed hearts can be boiled with a little salt and consumed before bed each night.
In addition, foods like jujubes, vinegar, honey, and whole wheat bread can also aid sleep. Consuming an appropriate amount of these foods before bed can help alleviate insomnia.
