For the sake of argument I’m going to include eating AND drinking here.

Instead of titling this article “What is The #1 WORST Thing To Eat Before Bed?” I should have titled it “What is The #1 WORST Thing To Ingest Before Bed?”

Most of you are probably thinking I’m going to say the worst thing to eat before bed is caffeine but I’m going to put that as #2 on this list.

I really need to do a deep dive on coffee, caffeine, and sleep. I plan to do that in the coming months because there are a lot of misconceptions about caffeine and coffee that I’d like to dive into someday.

Anyway I digress…

The worst thing to “eat” before bed is hands down, alcohol.

Unfortunately most of the population drinks alcohol which I consider to be a poison today. It wasn’t always this way though. Alcohol used to be medicinal. During Medieval times when they made beer it was infused with herbs.

Beer used to be an herbal infusion using fermentation as delivery vehicle to get the healing medicines into their body. When somebody was sick in the village, where were they sent?, to the “Ale House” of course where certain “ales” would help to heal you.

But these days they’ve removed all the herbal benefits of beer and it has become extremely damaging and estrogenic. The latter you can see in the rise of estrogen related cancers and beer bellies. Beer turns men into women through a rise in estrogen.

Why Is Alcohol a Poison?

I consider alcohol to be a poison mostly because of how it’s broken down in the body and its metabolic byproducts it creates during this breakdown process. Alcohol is a sugar which can feed the growth of candida, yeast and fungus in the body. There are books that I’ve read saying that cancer is a fungus and that sugar feeds the growth of cancer cells.

Ethanol is the kind of alcohol in most drinks and ethanol gets broken down by the liver (which has over 500 biological functions, so it’s kind of important) to acetaldehyde. We know that acetaldehyde itself is connected to many types of cancer.

Thank God that the body is made to break down acetaldehyde into less harmful acetate, which can be further broken down into water and carbon dioxide for elimination. But during the breakdown process which can take a long time, acetaldehyde is known to cause cirrhosis of the liver and massive amounts of inflammation leading to liver disease.

Is it really worth it?

Physical Health Risks

• Liver Disease: Heavy drinking can lead to conditions like fatty liver, hepatitis, fibrosis, and cirrhosis.
• Pancreatitis: Acute or chronic inflammation of the pancreas.
• Cancer: Increased risk of cancers, including liver, breast, mouth, throat, esophagus, and colon.
• Heart Disease: Can cause high blood pressure, cardiomyopathy, arrhythmias, and stroke.
• Immune System: Regular consumption weakens the immune system, making the body more susceptible to diseases.
• Digestive Issues: Alcohol can damage the tissues in the digestive tract and impair the intestines’ ability to digest food and absorb nutrients.
• Brain Damage: Alcohol can interfere with the brain’s communication pathways, affecting behavior and cognitive functions.
• Malnutrition: Alcohol calories lack nutrients and can contribute to vitamin deficiencies by interfering with the body’s ability to absorb nutrients.
• Sexual and Reproductive Health: Can cause erectile dysfunction and menstrual issues, and is harmful during pregnancy (leading to fetal alcohol spectrum disorders).

Mental Health Risks

• Dependence: Alcohol use can lead to physical and psychological dependence.
• Depression: Frequent drinking can increase the risk of depression.
• Anxiety: Can exacerbate anxiety, despite the initial perception of relaxation.
• Behavioral Changes: Impaired judgment and lowered inhibition can lead to risky behaviors.
• Memory Loss: Heavy drinking can result in short- and long-term memory loss.

Social and Economic Impacts

• Accidents and Injuries: Increased likelihood of accidents such as car crashes, falls, drownings, and burns.
• Family Problems: Can cause or exacerbate domestic violence and impact children through neglect.
• Work-related Issues: Employment problems and unemployment.
• Legal Issues: Alcohol-related legal problems, including those from driving under the influence.

Chronic Health Issues

• Osteoporosis: Alcohol interferes with the production of new bone, leading to fragile bones.
• Muscle Damage: Weakens muscle tissue and can lead to atrophy.
• Nerve Damage: Can cause alcoholic neuropathy, resulting in painful sensations in the limbs, muscle weakness, and urinary incontinence.
• Gastrointestinal Problems: Can cause gastritis and ulcers.

Addiction and Withdrawal Issues

• Withdrawal Symptoms: Symptoms can range from anxiety, tremors, seizures, and hallucinations to severe complications such as delirium tremens.
• Increased Tolerance: Requires consuming more alcohol to feel the same effects.

Long-term Risks

• Life Expectancy Reduction: Chronic alcohol use can shorten life expectancy by several years.
• Quality of Life Degradation: Overall reduction in quality of life due to health complications and social issues.

How Does Alcohol Affect Sleep?

At first it may seem like alcohol improves sleep. While it does have sedative effects initially helping you to fall asleep (I always noticed this, especially with red wine), the benefits pretty much stop there.

With that said though, there are some studies that have suggested it could improve deep sleep aka slow-wave-sleep as you reach the deep sleep phase before REM sleep.

I’ve noticed alcohol only helped me to fall asleep a little quicker but nothing else was improved.

It’s known that alcohol can delay the onset (and therefore timing aka circadian rhythm) of REM sleep which helps to regulate mood, detoxify the brain via the glymphatic system and even process thoughts and emotions. As a result of delaying the onset of the REM cycle of sleep, you reduce the amount of time you’re in REM as well.

Think of it like an appointment you’re late for. Let’s say you have a massage scheduled from 2pm to 3pm. Then let’s say you have to pick the kids up from school at 3:15pm. If you got to the massage at 2:30 instead of 2:00pm, the massage therapist may be kind enough to go 15 minutes overtime, but you still lost out on 15 minutes of massage.

Not only have you missed out on 15 minutes of relaxation but you are now 15 minutes late to pick the kids up from school. Now you go back to work later than you should have and miss deadlines as a result. You leave work later than normal and now your wife is mad that you’re late to dinner and the kids are already in bed.

All because you were 30 minutes late to your appointment.

Delaying the onset of REM phase of sleep is altering your overall circadian rhythm but also cutting that REM sleep cycle down and pushing it out longer than it should be, affecting other biological processes.

Every one of your biological processes  are all keyed up to your suprachiasmatic nucleus which runs your entire 24 hour circadian rhythm each day.

Alcohol also increases the amount of times you wake up because it makes you sleep lighter. This causes sleep fragmentation and you’ll feel it when you wake up.

It also is a diuretic (and dehydrates you at the cellular level) which increases the chances you’ll be waking up to go pee.

Alcohol can relax the muscles in the neck, throat and esophagus which can lead to issues like sleep apnea and snoring in the night.

It can also suppress melatonin and affect neurotransmitters in the brain like gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and glutamate. Initially it can help GABAergic activity (which promotes sedation) and falling asleep. But later as your body moves through the sleep cycles it can have a “rebound effect” and prevent deep sleep.

How To Drink & Avoid a Hangover

Here’s how you can still drink and mitigate the negative effects to a limited degree. The ideal situation is to avoid alcohol all together so you don’t even have to go through everything I’m going to list below. We all get to make our own decisions since we’re all grown ups here.

Before You Go Drinking

1. Hydrate: Drink plenty of water throughout the day before you start consuming alcohol.
2. Eat a Good Meal: Have a heavier meal high in proteins, and fats to slow the absorption of alcohol.
3. Prep with Supplements:
   • Take Zbiotics: This supplement creates an enzyme called Bacillus subtilis that breaks down acetaldehyde.
   • B Vitamins: Take a B-complex vitamin to boost your metabolism and help process alcohol.
   • Vitamin C: Consider taking 1000 mg of Vitamin C to help protect your liver.
   • Milk Thistle: Take milk thistle to support liver health and function.
   • N-Acetyl Cysteine (NAC): Take 600 mg of NAC about 30 minutes before drinking to increase glutathione and reduce acetaldehyde toxicity.

While You’re Drinking

1. Choose Wisely: Opt for clear spirits (like vodka and gin) which tend to have fewer congeners than darker liquors (like whiskey and rum).
2. Moderation: Stick to the recommended one drink per hour to give your body time to metabolize alcohol effectively.
3. Hydrate Between Drinks: Drink a glass of water between alcoholic drinks to prevent dehydration.
4. Avoid Carbonation: Carbonated mixers can increase the rate of alcohol absorption. Stick with non-carbonated options.

After You’re Done Drinking

1. Water Before Bed: Drink a large glass of water before going to sleep to hydrate and flush out toxins.
2. Electrolyte Replenishment: Consider taking an electrolyte supplement or drinking an electrolyte-rich beverage to restore balance.
3. Additional Supplements:
   • Magnesium: Take 200-400 mg of magnesium to help relax your muscles and nerves.

The Morning After

1. More Hydration: Continue drinking plenty of water upon waking to aid dehydration symptoms.
2. Healthy Breakfast: Eat a nutritious breakfast that includes eggs (which contain cysteine, helping to break down acetaldehyde), fruits (for vitamins), and protein (to stabilize blood sugar).
3. Ginger Tea: Drink ginger tea to help with nausea and settle your stomach.
4. Continue Vitamin Supplementation:
   • B Vitamins and Vitamin C: Repeat your vitamin regimen to boost recovery.

A Few More Tips

1. Avoid Smoking: Smoking can intensify hangover symptoms and adds to the toxic burden on your body.
2. Get Plenty of Rest: Allow your body to recover fully with a good night’s sleep following a day of drinking.
3. Physical Activity: Engage in light exercise like walking, which can increase your metabolism and help clear toxins more quickly.

Practical Tips For Improving Sleep

• Avoid alcohol
• Avoid caffeine after 11am
• Avoid eating after sunset (unless its my “midnight snack“)
• Watch the sunrise
• Avoid ALL blue light by wearing these glasses and using this software
• Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day
• Avoid sunglasses and closed windows. Open windows when possible.
• Get sun on or in your naked eyes multiple times throughout the day.
• Ground to the earth to discharge static electricity and receive free electrons.
• Biohack your bedroom

Conclusion

When you read what I wrote about about what alcohol does to the liver and everything you have to do to mitigate the effects of it, is it really in your best interest to drink it? Ask yourself, how is this drink helping me become the person I want to be? How is this drink helping me to reach my goals? Is it helping me to be a better husband, father or son? Is it going to help me achieve the goals I want in life?

There’s not one beneficial thing about alcohol where I would look at it and say it’s helping me with any of those things. I realize it’s easy to justify “just one drink” or I “just want to have fun tonight and let loose a bit”. I still don’t recommend alcohol before bed but if you are going to do it, at least buy the supplements and try to mitigate the damage it causes.

So what’s the worst thing to eat before bed?

Hands down alcohol.

Questions:

1. What do you think is the worst thing to eat before bed?
2. Do you drink on a regular basis?
3. How does it make you feel?
4. Is it worth it to you?
5. Do different types of alcohol impact your sleep differently?

Comment below!