TABLE 2.
Summary of clinical studies that assessed effects of food on sleep quality1
| Study (ref) | Food | Subjects | Methods | Treatment group results2 |
| Southwell et al. (38) | MM, Horlicks | 4 healthy men | No drink (control), 350 mL warm water, or 350 mL MM drink 30 min before bedtime | Less movement after MM (412 frames of movements) vs. control (500 frames of movements) |
| Brezinová et al. (39) | MM, Horlicks | Group 1: 10 subjects (4 women), aged 20–30 y | MM drink (32 g Horlicks powder + 250 mL hot milk) or inert capsule (control) at night for 10 d, 30 min before bedtime | Group 1: |
| Group 2: 8 subjects (5 women), aged 42–66 y | Wake episodes: decreased (11.6 times) vs. control (14.5 times) in the seventh hour of sleep | |||
| Group 2: | ||||
| TST: higher (450.5 min) vs. control (439.6 min) | ||||
| WASO: lower (3.6 min) vs. control (15.5 min) in the second 3 h of sleep | ||||
| Adam (40) | MM, Horlicks | 16 subjects | Inert capsule (control), MM drink (32 g Horlicks powder + hot milk), flavored drink (devoid of milk and cereal), or milk alone at night for 5 d | TST: higher in those who habitually eat before bedtime after MM (463.8 min) and milk alone (471.2 min) vs. control (452.0 min) |
| Valtonen et al. (41) | Melatonin-enriched milk | 70 elderly subjects with a chronic illness | 17 oz melatonin-enriched milk for 8 wk | Increased morning and evening physical activity (within groups) |
| Yamamura et al. (42) | Fermented milk, Lactobacillus helveticus | 29 subjects, aged 60–81 y | 100 g fermented milk or artificially acidified milk (control) 1 time/d at any time for 3 wk | SE: higher after intervention (91.18% ± 1.08%) vs. control (91.37% ± 0.98%) |
| Wake episodes: decreased after intervention (8.31 ± 0.62 times) vs. control (8.85 ± 0.75 times) | ||||
| Pigeon et al. (43) | TCJ, Montmorency | 15 subjects (7 women), aged >65 y, with insomnia | 8 oz TCJ or cherry-flavored drink (control) for 2 wk in morning and evening | ISI: lower after TCJ (13.2 ± 2.8) vs. control (14.9 ± 3.6) |
| WASO: lower after TCJ (62.1 ± 37.4 min) vs. control (79.1 ± 38.6 min) | ||||
| Garrido et al. (44) | Jerte Valley cherries (7 cultivars) | M group: 6 subjects, aged 35–55 y; E group: 6 subjects, aged 65–85 y | 200 g cherries for 3 d as lunch and dinner desserts (no control) | TST: increased after consumption of 6 of the 7 cultivars in M group (1.15- to 1.45-fold increase vs. control) and after all 7 cultivars in E group (1.14- to 1.33-fold increase vs. control) |
| SE: increased 1.12- ± 0.02-fold in Van cultivar in M group | ||||
| SOL: decreased 0.54- ± 0.10-fold with consumption of Navalinda cultivar in M group and 0.51- ± 0.07-fold with consumption of Pico Negro cultivar in E group | ||||
| Howatson et al. (45) | TCJ, Montmorency | 20 subjects, aged 18–40 y | 8 oz TCJ or cherry-flavored drink (control) for 1 wk within 30 min of awakening and 30 min before the evening meal | TIB: higher after TCJ (514.7 ± 17.0 min) vs. control (492.2 ± 40.6 min) |
| TST: higher after TCJ (419 ± 22 min) vs. control (380 ± 49 min) | ||||
| SE: higher after TCJ (86.8 ± 3.6%) vs. control (84.1 ± 5.8%) | ||||
| Lin et al. (46) | Kiwifruit | 24 subjects (2 men), aged 20–55 y | 2 kiwifruits 1 h before bedtime for 4 wk (no control) | TST: higher with kiwifruit intake (395.3 ± 17.4 min) vs. control (354.5 ± 17.1 min) |
| SE: higher with kiwifruit intake (91.2 ± 1.53%) vs. control (86.9 ± 1.94%) | ||||
| WASO: lower with kiwifruit intake (12.8 ± 3.49 min) vs. control (18.9 ± 4.31 min) | ||||
| SOL: lower with kiwifruit intake (20.4 ± 3.53 min) vs. control (34.3 ± 3.86 min) |
1
E, elderly; ISI, Insomnia Severity Index; M, middle-aged; MM, malted milk; oz, ounce; ref, reference; SE, sleep efficiency; SOL, sleep onset latency; TCJ, tart cherry juice; TIB, time in bed; TST, total sleep time; WASO, wake after sleep onset.
2
Only significant results are reported, P < 0.05. Results are shown relative to the control group unless otherwise noted.