We’ve all heard the precautionary tale that eating cheese before bed can lead to strange dreams. But, can an innocent dairy-based snack really have an impact on the quality of our sleep?
The online casino team here at 888 Casino has conducted a new experiment, to determine whether certain cheeses can actually lead to a bad night’s sleep, and which types will keep you up at night the most.
We provided a group of (very willing) participants with sleep trackers and 10 types of cheese to sample before bed across 10 days, monitoring just how well they slept.
The metrics we used to determine sleep quality included:
- Sleep quality percentage score
- Time spent asleep
- Time spent awake
- Time spent in deep sleep
- Time spent in REM sleep
- Time spent in light sleep
We’ve also taken a look at which beverages can lead to the worst night’s sleep, and surprisingly, coffee doesn’t come out on top!
Which cheese impacts our sleep the most?
First things first, we did find that no cheese before bed is best (sorry to disappoint all you cheese fiends out there).
Participants slept for a total of seven hours 43 minutes on their normal night, which is six minutes longer than an average night after eating cheese. They also spent a whopping two hours eight minutes of this in REM sleep — 23 minutes more than on a typical cheese-eating evening. Sidenote: This kind of sleep is when you tend to dream, and it’s really important for stimulating the areas of the brain associated with learning.
Plus, when they drifted off without a pre-bed snack, participants also recorded the highest sleep quality score of 82 out of 100. To compare, an average night’s sleep after eating cheese only led to a quality score of 78.
But, sometimes we just can’t resist the lure of that creamy goodness calling to us from the fridge. So, which of the nation’s favourite cheeses are best (and worst) for a nighttime nibble?
Mozzarella leads to the worst night’s sleep
Ah, Mozzarella! Slice it, grate it, fry it, or put it on pizza, it’s a very versatile cheese. But, according to our research, it’s not one to be eating if you want a good night’s sleep.
It looks like eating Mozzarella before bed could lead to a very restless night, as participants were awake for around one hour and eight minutes — the second longest time in the study. They also only managed one hour and three minutes of deep sleep, and a mere one hour and 33 minutes in the REM stage, so there wasn’t a whole lot of blissful snoozing going on here.
Gorgonzola has come in second. This stinky blue might leave you a little tired, as participants only spent around seven hours and 23 minutes asleep after snacking on it — the least amount of shut-eye recorded on any night of the cheese study. They did get a little bit more deep sleep than with Mozzarella, spending one hour and eight minutes in the slow-wave sleep stage, but they were also tossing and turning for one hour and seven minutes, on average.
In third place is Ricotta. Participants managed only seven hours and 24 minutes asleep after munching on the soft cheese, though they weren’t too restless, recording an average of just 54 minutes awake. However, they did experience the least amount of deep sleep compared to any other night in the study, managing just 55 minutes in this crucial snooze stage.
Camembert allows for the best night’s sleep
Taking the crown for the best cheese to eat after-hours is Camembert. Whether you’re slicing it cold or baking it into a gooey treat, this French delicacy is the cheese least likely to affect your slumber.
Participants slept for a total of seven hours and 40 minutes after snacking on it, so just shy of the amount of sleep people had without cheese. One hour and 13 minutes of this was spent in deep sleep, which is vital for promoting restorative functions in the body. Camembert also seems to be good for avoiding a restless night, as participants were only awake for 54 minutes, the second lowest number in the study.
In second place is Halloumi, with participants enjoying seven hours and 44 minutes of shut-eye. That’s even longer than when people didn’t eat any cheese at all! This squeaky snack is apparently great for promoting deep sleep, with participants averaging one hour and 11 minutes in this phase.
Rounding off the top three best cheeses for a good night’s sleep is the humble Cream Cheese. Participants slept for a little less time than after eating Camembert or Halloumi, enjoying around seven hours and 33 minutes of snoozing. However, this spreadable treat matches Halloumi for how long it kept participants in a deep sleep (one hour and 11 minutes) and they also experienced one hour and 53 minutes of REM sleep.
Halloumi causes the most dreams
The old wives' tale about cheese giving you wild dreams? Well, there might be some truth to it — but it depends which cheese you’re snacking on.
Halloumi takes the crown for dreamiest cheese, with an average of one hour and 58 minutes spent in REM sleep after eating it before bed. REM sleep (or Rapid Eye Movement sleep) is the stage of slumber where dreaming is most likely to occur. During REM sleep, the brain becomes very active — even more active than some waking states. This increased activity is thought to be what allows us to experience vivid dreams.
Brie and Ricotta follow closely behind Halloumi, leading to an average of one hour and 55 minutes of REM sleep each.
Cheese dreams aren't for everyone, though. Mozzarella and Cheddar seem to have a slightly less dramatic effect on REM sleep, averaging around one hour and 33 and 37 minutes respectively. So, if you’re looking for a tasty way to spend more time in dreamland, put away the milder cheese and opt for something a little stronger like Brie instead.
Which drinks impact our sleep the most?
We might not all be reaching for a cheesy snack after-hours, but most of us are probably sipping some sort of beverage before bed. With this in mind, our research also took a closer look at which drinks can lead to the best night’s sleep.
Milk leads to a worse night’s sleep than coffee
Somewhat surprisingly, milk leads to a worse night’s sleep than coffee. Participants only spent around six hours and 52 minutes asleep, which is the least amount of time recorded, and they were also awake for around one hour and three minutes of the night.
Meanwhile, coffee lulled people into a slightly longer slumber of seven hours and 10 minutes, and participants were only awake for 54 minutes throughout the night. They did however, only manage one hour and three minutes in deep sleep, which is the lowest amount of time after drinking any beverage.
Tea is the best drink to enjoy before bed
Despite the caffeine content, tea is the best thing to drink before bed. Participants might not have experienced the longest sleep in the study, averaging seven hours and 23 minutes, but they did enjoy one hour and 14 minutes in deep sleep — the longest time after drinking any beverage. They also recorded a sleep quality score of 80 out of 100.
Hot Chocolate is also a good drink to reach for late at night, coming in second, with participants sleeping for a huge seven hours and 48 minutes — the most snoozing time recorded in the whole study!
Tea and hot chocolate are most likely to cause dreams
If you're looking to enhance your dream life, ditch the bedtime glass of milk and reach for a steaming mug of tea instead. Yep, that’s right — our study found that tea leads to the most REM sleep, averaging at one hour and 38 minutes per night. Hot chocolate comes in a close second at one hour and 34 minutes, surprisingly outranking coffee at one hour and 31 minutes.
These warm beverages seem to nudge us into a dreamier state compared to plain water (one hour and 29 minutes) or milk (one hour and 30 minutes) before bed.
What is the science behind cheese and a good night’s sleep?
So, we now know which cheeses (and drinks) might keep us awake at night, but what exactly is the science behind this? We’ve partnered with Susan Leigh, counsellor and hypnotherapist at Lifestyle Therapy, who has explained how a pre-bed dairy snack can affect our sleep and dreams.
She says, “Many people enjoy old wives tales, even though there’s rarely any scientific validity to them. When it comes to the idea that eating cheese before bed can lead to a restless night, there is some science that shows it can actually help us drift off.
“Cheese contains large amounts of tyramine, which affects the release of noradrenaline in the part of the brain responsible for REM. Cheddar and Parmesan are also high in tryptophan, the amino acid that can help promote sleep. But, how much a person would have to eat to feel the effects is a whole other story. Sometimes just believing it can make it true!”
Methodology and Sources
We carried out an experiment to reveal which cheeses are the best (and worst) for sleep.
We asked 11 participants to eat a different cheese every night for 10 nights. Each participant wore a sleep tracker to bed, which allowed us to measure:
- Sleep quality score
- Time spent asleep
- Time spent awake
- Time spent in deep sleep
- Time spent in REM sleep
- Time spent in light sleep
Based on average scores across these metrics, we awarded each cheese an overall sleep score to reveal which leads to the best night’s sleep. We used the same methodology to determine which beverages are best to drink before bed.
The following cheeses were included in the study:
- Camembert
- Halloumi
- Cream Cheese
- Parmesan
- Blue Cheese - Stilton
- Brie
- Cheddar
- Ricotta
- Gorgonzola
- Mozzarella
The following beverages were included in the study:
- Tea
- Hot Chocolate
- Water
- Coffee
- Milk
Expert commentary provided by Susan Leigh, counsellor and hypnotherapist from Lifestyle Therapy.
