A study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition discovered that consumption of sugars, starches and refined grains was associated with a higher likelihood of deficiency in sleep for women who are postmenopausal. Researchers believe this is because of carb-rich food items that trigger stress hormones like cortisol or adrenaline, causing blood sugar imbalances which hinder sleep [33.
In a different way, an interesting study revealed that a change of blood sugar caused by eating a diet high in carbs causes it to be more difficult to sleep for a full night of restful sleep [44.
Of of course, not all carbs are created equal and unprocessed natural carbs do not have the same effect on your body. But, better carbs such as beans and sweet potatoes also influence your blood sugar levels and eating too much of them can cause you to feel exhausted.
Food allergies have also been proven to cause fatigue after eating It’s therefore important to distinguish between carb crashes and food allergies [55..
Is Serotonin Sleeping You?
Consuming carbohydrates can increase the hormone serotonin in your brain, which may induce sleepiness. Many people eat a lot of carbohydrates in order to feel better. This feedback mechanism and the increase in serotonin may be addictive and lead to overweight. Actually, nicotine can have the same effect , and enhances the brain’s serotonin release as do carbohydrates [66.
Are you consuming too many carbs? Does it cause you to feel exhausted? Have you felt more energized going keto? Tell us about it on Ketogenic.com!
