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We've all heard the expression "It must have been something I ate". You've probably used it yourself. For me it's usually an expression that connotes unpleasant feelings. Most often it's my explanation for a bad feeling in my digestive system. But I suppose it might also apply as a reason for having some of the dreams we have.
If I've eaten too much, not enough, or something that has an effect on my mind or body, I might be kept awake by the discomfort of a bad feeling in my stomach. Caffeine or certain stimulating foods might cause me to feel jittery and keep me awake. If I eat something like fruit or drink a lot of liquids I might need to get up with some frequency to go to the bathroom.
In the latter case I will often have dreams about looking for a bathroom, finally awakening to actually get up and go. If I haven't eaten enough and am hungry, I will probably dream about food. The feelings in my body can understandably influence my dreams. But I wonder if specific foods influence dreams in some way?
I can't remember any instances where I can say a particular food influenced my dreams. I would surmise that any spicy food or highly flavorful food could very well affect my dream life. Perhaps candy, desserts, or any sugar laden or sweet foods influence dreams. I would not be surprised if meats, pizza, or certain ethnic foods would cause an increase of dream activity. Honestly, I cannot say that this is the case since I don't recall an example from my own life.
Maybe you can provide some examples that you have experienced.
Can you pinpoint any specific foods that have caused you to have more unusual dreams than normal? What foods would you expect to have the most affect on dreaming? Do you ever purposely eat or drink anything in order to have increased dream activity?
I've joked 'that's the last time I eat such and such before bed b/c I had weird dreams' but I have no idea what 'such and such' are now! I have had those urgent bathroom dreams before, and am always grateful that I wake up and bolt to the loo before I really let go in my sleep.
ReplyDeleteNo, I don't have any food related dreams. I have had dreams where I am running to find a bathroom.
ReplyDeletethis a.m. I had a horrible dream about my childhood and woke up early. I didn't want to remember it so I went back to sleep and slept until 9:00
JoJo - The food thing is my problem. I guess the solution is to carefully document what we eat before going to bed and see what kind of dreams we have. I never remember to do this or want to take the time.
ReplyDeleteSusan -- I wish I could sleep until 9 sometime, but not because of any bad dream.
Lee
I think there must have been times when what I've eaten has affected my dreams but I can't remember off hand. I think it's a vastly interesting topic, though. Gosh, how cool would it have been to research something like this for a science fair project!
ReplyDeleteSuze - Yeah, I guess it's something a person would really have to be paying attention to. And there are probably a lot of variables. A food that affects one person a certain way might not be the same for another.
ReplyDeleteLee