8Take A Good Multivitamin Every Day
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Make certain you’re getting adequate nutrition every day. Many people don’t. Why?
Because most people are simply not eating the right amounts of fruits (3 to 4 servings) and vegetables (4 to 5 servings) every day to supply their body with the nutrients it needs.
That’s why many of the nutrition experts I’ve worked with and interviewed (including experts from the Linus Pauling Institute, Harvard Medical School, and Dr. Andrew Weil’s company) recommend a good multivitamin.
Because it’s a fact: nutrient shortages can affect your sleep and leave you with a feeling of fatigue. For example, B vitamins are important for energy production in cells. And vitamin B6 works with the sleep aid 5-htp to help create serotonin.
7Take Calcium And Magnesium
Adequate calcium and magnesium in your daily diet are also important nutrients for helping you relax and get a good night’s sleep. But according to the U.S. Office of Dietary Supplements, millions of Americans are not getting adequate amounts.
Magnesium in particular may help with fatigue and stress reduction. Multivitamins almost never contain much calcium or magnesium, so you may need to supplement if your diet is lacking in these two essential nutrients.
You should also make certain you are getting at least 400 IU of vitamin D3 every day (1,000 IU supplements are even better, especially during the dark winter months). Vitamin D is important for calcium absorption.
6Melatonin (One Of The Most Studied Natural Sleep Aids)
A melatonin sleep aid can be very effective for some people, especially for jet lag. Melatonin can be taken by itself as a natural sleep aid.
You’ll also often see it as a blend in supplements, which may be the most effective way to use it. As a natural remedy for insomnia, melatonin is definitely worth trying.
55-Htp
Also known as 5-hydroxytryptophan, this substance is produced in the body from the amino acid tryptophan. In supplements, 5-htp often comes from Griffonia simplicifolia seed extract.
5-htp is a precursor to serotonin and increases serotonin levels in the brain. Serotonin is an important neurotransmitter that has many functions, one of which is to regulate sleep.
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One of the great things about 5-htp is that it crosses easily from the blood into the brain. That’s why 5-htp taken by itself may be effective for reaching a natural calm mood and also help with depression.
As a natural sleep aid, it’s probably best to use 5-htp as part of a supplement blend.
4Gaba
This brain neurotransmitter is included in some natural sleep aids because it has a calming effect and relieves anxiety that can keep a person awake at night. GABA does promote drowsiness and may help some people fall asleep faster.
3L-Glutamine, Also Known As Glutamine
This is the most abundant amino acid in your body.
It has a wide range of uses, including for insomnia, anxiety, and to improve mood.
2L-Theanine
This is also an amino acid and is naturally found in green tea. Studies have shown that green tea contains about 1 to 3% theanine.
It has a relaxing and anti-anxiety effect on the mind. And as you and I both know, stress causes a lot of sleepless nights!
Green tea itself is not a natural remedy for insomnia because this tea contains caffeine. You can, however, purchase green tea that is decaffeinated.
1Herbal Sleep Remedies
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The best natural sleep aid will have some combination of sleep herbs in them.
Typically these herbs for sleep will be: valerian, hops, passionflower, chamomile, lemon balm, and lavender. However, not all of these herbs need to be present for the all natural sleep aid to be effective.
These herbal sleep aids will also often have melatonin mixed in with them, though not always.
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