Is Eating Cereal At Night Bad (Explained Physiologically)

It’s common for many of us to have a sudden urge for food late at night. Maybe you have exams or have a boatload of projects to complete for the next day. And you can’t hit the hay with a grumbling tummy. Even your hectic college days won’t permit you to ignite the woven for a complete meal. So an easy peasy solution sparks the question, can you eat cereal at night? 

But the thing is that your wrong choice of food before bed can wreak havoc on your slumber. That’s why you’ve to know if eating cereal at night is bad for your health and find out the best cereal to eat at night. Finding somniferous food will help you recover fast through sound sleep.

Though most people usually eat cereal in their breakfast, it’s not uncommon to have cereal at night for dinner. It’s not bad either if you know the healthy way. If you’ve got a question like, is eating cereal bad at night, we’ll discuss it so that you have a clear concept and enough confidence to pursue what you like as a late night munchie.

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You’ll find different narratives on the internet that may seem controversial. There is strong evidence behind both of them. But we’ll opt for the dietary habit, which is scientifically the most sophisticated.

The result of eating cereal at night entirely depends on the way you eat it. Some environmental and habitual factors have an impact on eating cereal at night. We’re going to discuss if it’s okay to eat cereal at night, whether it be for dinner or to curb your midnight cravings. Let’s get the ball rolling.

Is it OK to eat cereal at night for dinner

Cereal is typically meant for your breakfast routine. But the fad has been turning into an interesting one. Eating breakfast foods for dinner has gained massive traction in recent days. A study suggests that 80% of Brits have ended a day with the foods they used to have for breakfast when one-third of them try this idea at least once a week. Eating breakfast foods like cereal at dinner is now a buzzing trend that has spread across the pond.

The brinner movement has lots to offer when you’ve to curate healthy foods carefully. Eating cereal at night for dinner is okay. The calorie intake in your dinner doesn’t have to do with anything. You don’t have to worry as long as your daily total calorie intake doesn’t pass the assigned quota. 

You’ll find plenty of sugary and refined cereal, which have very few benefits to contribute to your health. Branded cereal like Froot Loops is highly sweetened with sugar. Why would you opt for unhealthy options when there are many more healthy bowls of cereal to eat at night for dinner. Fortified cereals are an excellent option to start your day as well as to end the day.

Another unhealthy eating habit we find in most people is abandoning whole grains. Processed or refined grains lost the most effective nutrition part. And hence you shouldn’t adore the glaring grains, excluding some of the most healthful nutrition. Unsweetened whole grains, such as buckwheat, millet, quinoa, and corn, should be unequal cereals to eat at night.

The healthiest choice would be selecting low sugar, high dietary fiber cereals for your dinner. The outermost part of the whole grain is the most nutritious part containing a high dietary fiber concentration. Dietary fibers feed on the normal flora of our gut, thus preventing various bowel diseases like constipation, diverticulitis, etc. Even they restrain the havoc of sugar components in your blood. Insoluble dietary fibers in the bran portion of the cereals also prevent diabetes, reduce blood cholesterol levels, and eliminate the possibility of stroke by manifolds. Then what’s wrong with eating cereal at night?

If you maintain a healthy habit of eating ready-to-go cereals, research suggests that there’ll be less chance of getting malnutrition from vitamins and minerals. It gets easy to avoid a lack of vitamin B, D, folate, iron, etc. Add more fruits and vegetables to cereals to increase the fiber contents.

Is it OK to eat a bowl of cereal before bed

Is cereal good before bed? The rumbling sound reminds you to send something solid to your belly. But how on earth can you go for another cooking session while you had your dinner early at night. It’s common to get hungry if you stay awake almost 3-4 hours after having dinner. But then the concern rings in your mind, is it okay to eat a bowl of cereal before bed?

Eating more than assigned calories will hinder your progress if you’re up for a weight-loss mission. If you suddenly feel like eating, you have nothing but to go cold turkey. If you can’t endure the urge of the hunger hormone ghrelin in your blood, then eat something lighter. After all, ghrelin has a major impact on your sleep cycle. You may need to wake up again and again and search for something in the cupboards or freeze.

But usually, eating unsweetened and fiber-rich cereal, which is low in calories is nothing worse for your health or your sleep. Eating a cup of popcorn burns less than 100 calories only. Moreover, cereals can enhance your circadian rhythm and improve sleep quality. If you add milk to cereals, you’ll get some essential compounds like tryptophan, melanin which contribute to a sound sleep.

Is eating cereal at night bad for weight loss

You can eat cereal and still lose weight. 

If you eat cereal at night for dinner, it’s nothing bad until your total calorie intake exceeds the recommended level. Some cereals are high in calories, while others are high in sugar. Such types of cereal will ruin your weight loss plan. Even if you choose to eat low-sugar and fiber-rich cereals, that might contribute to your extra calories. However, if you prepare the diet plan, including your late-night cravings, it’ll be a lot easier to keep a tab on your total calorie intake.

After observing several cases, a study published in the PubMed medical journal brings an astonishing result to light. They suggest that well-structured ready-to-eat cereal consumption contributes to weight loss significantly. You can follow a structured cereal plan that will help you reduce your weight and curb the late night munching at the same time. So if you follow such structured cereal suggestions after dinner, you can curb the excess calorie intake. So night snackers, eating cereal at night is suitable for your weight loss plan.

But how is eating cereal at night good for weight loss? Grains rich in dietary fiber stay longer in the gut due to slow digestion. When you sleep, the digestion rate further decreases. So you wake up in the morning with a minimum urge for a heavy meal. And that’ll lead to a considerable reduction of energy consumption resulting in weight loss. However, this consequence is highly variable and varies from person to person. But you can try to check if this way clicks well to your weight loss plan. 

Does eating cereal before bed make you fat

Your regular and unstructured midnight cravings for cereal may lead to weight gain, which is highly likely and more common. If you opt for sugary cereals, which are pretty available and branded, they’ll make you fat eventually. Some grains contain syrups that act like exponents on top of your fat gain. 

But being fat is all about choosing unhealthy cereals before you hit the hay. If you select sugar-free cereals for your night munching, it’ll be a lot easier to restrict extra weight gain. As mentioned earlier, following a structured diet plan can even reduce your weight. So make wise and healthy choices, and strike the iron while it’s hot. Otherwise, eating cereal before bed will make you fat.

What is the best cereal to eat at night

As you know by now, maintaining a structured cereal diet is necessary to fend off extra weight and wretched slumber. That’s why you need to find and nibble at the best cereal to eat before bed. You need to steer clear of popular cereal brands like cinnamon toast crunch since they’re crammed with sugar contents. To select the best, you need to scan some features of your favorite cereals. 

If you find these criteria in any cereal, then this cereal is the best to eat at night or before bed.

• The cereal has to be plain
• It should be organic
• It should contain less to no sugar
• It should be rich in dietary fiber
• Whole grains are the first choice
• The cereal should be low in calories if eaten before bed

Muesli, corn flakes, popcorn, bran flakes, chickpeas, tapioca, rice crispies, rice puffs are some of the best cereal you can eat at night and before bed. When you buy cereals, check the nutrition label and scan it for one serving-

• At least 3 grams of dietary fibers
• Better if it’s within 100 calories
• Not more than 8 grams of sugar

Does eating cereal before bed help you sleep

Eating healthy cereals, high in fibers and low in sugars, can help you sleep well. Eating a tryptophan enriched cereal helps you to have a sound sleep. Adding milk to cereals will improve both flavor and nutrition profile. You’re getting more tryptophan and melatonin that help you achieve a night of peaceful sleep. 

If you can’t digest milk, then have cereal with almond milk, coconut milk, etc. Milk and cereal make a great combo to eat at night.

Cereal to avoid before bed

You should know by now which types of cereal to avoid before bed. They’ll not only hamper your gut health but also rob you of a peaceful night. You should avoid the cereals which are-

• Highly sweetened
• Low in dietary fibers
• High in calorie
• Refined grains that don’t have the important 2 parts of a grain
• Low in fat

Some popular cereal makers brand their products to highlight substantial vitamins and minerals. But don’t get lulled by them to forget to check the sugar and fiber contents.

Wrap Up

All the scribbles above only point to the importance of selecting healthy cereals to eat before bed at night. Don’t be an airhead by gnashing at unhealthy popular cereals and ruining your health and the night’s sleep. If you still question whether eating cereal at night is bad, you need to side with one of the controversies when there’s none. 

Eating healthy cereals at night before bed will do nothing dangerous to your sleep or health. Instead, it’ll help you in several ways if you follow a structured guideline.