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Meal timing and sleep

Big late meals hurt sleep efficiency; finish ≥ 3 h before bed.

Food is a circadian and arousal signal. Late, large, fatty meals correlate with longer sleep onset and lower efficiency; higher fibre and lower sugar/saturated fat predict deeper sleep. Galpin: 'Are you eating too late?' is one of the first variables to test.

Track first- and last-meal times; SleepShred computes the meal-to-bed gap and compares late-meal nights with the rest.

Sources · 4

The health impact of nighttime eatingKinsey AW, Ormsbee MJ · 2015Large late meals impair sleep and metabolic health; small protein-rich snacks are less problematic.Relationship between food intake and sleep pattern in healthy individualsCrispim CA, Zimberg IZ, dos Reis BG, Diniz RM, Tufik S, de Mello MT · 2011Higher fat intake close to bedtime correlated with worse sleep efficiency and longer sleep onset.Effects of diet on sleep qualitySt-Onge MP, Mikic A, Pietrolungo CE · 2016Higher fibre and lower saturated fat/sugar predict deeper sleep; kiwifruit and tart cherry show promise.A smartphone app reveals erratic diurnal eating patterns in humans that can be modulated…Gill S, Panda S · 2015Most people eat across >15 h/day; restricting to a 10–11 h window led to weight loss and better sleep with no other instruction — the 'eating window' rule.

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Meal timing & diet

Frequently asked questions

Meal timing and sleep?

Big late meals hurt sleep efficiency; finish ≥ 3 h before bed.

Is SleepShred free?

No. SleepShred Pro is $4.99 per month or $29.99 per year, with no free trial and no ads. Everything stays on your iPhone.

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SleepShred turns this research into a 20-second daily habit: log your night, see which of your own behaviours move your sleep, and screen for the disorders nobody diagnoses.

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Educational summary of published research, not medical advice. Screening scores are not diagnoses. If a score is elevated or you feel unwell, talk to a clinician.