How Drinking Soda Before Bed Affects Your Sleep?

We dive into the effects of soda on your body and sleep and advise you on how to minimize them.
By
Romeo Vitelli
Romeo Vitelli
Expert Writer
Received his doctorate in Psychology in 1987, spent fifteen years as a staff psychologist in Millbrook Correctional Centre. In 2003 went into full-time private practice. read more
reviewed
Reviewed By
Medical Advisory Team
Medical Advisory Team
Includes well-known professionals, who together provide decades of sleep medicine experience that enables Talk About Sleep to fulfill its mission of creating access to high- read more
Last updated: August 14, 2023
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We all have one or two habits we do before bed; drinking soda before bed is a perfect example. Research indicates that one in two American adults suffering from heartburn may want to drink soda hours before bedtime. Soda contains caffeine and a lot of sugar which may affect the ability to sleep.

According to WebMD, caffeine can cause insomnia, nervousness, stomach irritation, increased heart rate and respiration, and other side effects. Larger doses might cause headaches, anxiety, agitation, and chest pain. Soda before bed is a bad idea that should be avoided.

As you read further in this article, we will provide you with more reasons why you should avoid soda.

How Soda Affects Your Body

Soda has been proven to be bad for our well-being; the ingredients contain sugar which is harmful to the body.  The side effect of soda is enormous; below, you get the detrimental impact of soda to the body.

Excess Weight

How Drinking Soda Before Bed Affects Your Sleep?

You don’t want to add weight. Then soda before bed is not for you. Weight gain is one of the most apparent side effects of soda.

The influx of calories and sugar into the body can gain you more weight. One can of soda contains 150 calories and approximately 40 grams of sugar.  Drinking more than one can double the amount of sugar in the body. Soda containing high fructose is linked to obesity. Aside from gaining more weight, you are at risk of obesity.

Even diet sodas cause weight gain to regular drinkers. Drinking soda puts you at risk of having belly fat. Artificial sweeteners in soda cause people to crave more sugar than they usually would.

Risk of Diabetes

How Drinking Soda Before Bed Affects Your Sleep?

According to Harvard T.H CHAN, people who consume sugary drinks(soda, soft drinks) regularly – an average of two cans a day or more, are at 26% greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes than people who rarely have such drinks. The Risks are even more significant in young adults and Asians.

Researchers have recommended a decrease in sugar consumption or consume less sugary beverages. According to most reviews, Chamomile Tea contains no sugar and caffeine.

Reduced Sperm Count

Soda contains sugar which causes low sperm count for men. Low sperm count can drive low productivity; fertility rates are also low, affecting sexual performance for men.

How It Influences the Quality of Your Sleep

An article on Reuter explains the influence of soda on your quality of sleep. The article mentioned adults who don’t sleep five hours at night are likely to be heavy soda drinkers.

As researchers have noted, soda and lack are independently associated with obesity.

Interestingly, survey data on 1,900 adults shows 13 percent lack adequate sleep due to consumption of sugary beverages. It is healthy for adults to sleep for 8 hours at night.

Soda ingested with caffeine – an ingredient found in soda – primarily causes a lack of sleep. Caffeine blocks the part of the brain responsible for tiredness.

Avoiding soda naturally helps to have a sweet sleep at night, but if you hardly sleep at night, a noise machine is a perfect idea.

What Can You Do to Sleep Better After Drinking Soda?

Now you know your best beverage(soda) is responsible for keeping you awake all night. Nevertheless, you want to break the jinx and have sweet dreams. The solution below is the best secret to your problem.

Avoid Soda at Night

Sleep experts recommended you take soda four to six hours before bedtime. The caffeine in the soda would react before you sleep at night. Although, if your body is sensitive to caffeine, this might not work for you. You need to avoid soda late at night.

Sleep in a Quiet Bedroom

After drinking soda, you can decide to sleep in a quiet and friendly bedroom. Colder temperature helps the body sleep naturally. The optimal sleeping temperature is 16–19 degrees Celsius (60–65 degrees Fahrenheit).

How Drinking Soda Before Bed Affects Your Sleep?

Make sure your room is neat, quiet, and friendly. It helps you fall asleep easily

Turn Off Your Bedroom Light and Devices

When your bedroom light is turned on, it is difficult to fall asleep. Wavelength light delays the natural sleep-wake cycle.

Lights from smartphones, TV when creeping into the eye, disturbs the sleep-wake cycle. Preferably use a sleep mask whenever you have a bedroom light on.

Calm Music

Music is also the best way to sleep; researchers have proved quiet and calm music improves sleep.

Classic music on a slow rhythm (80–90 minutes) makes it easier to fall asleep. The asleep tracker also helps you get to sleep, especially if you haven’t had enough sleep in a while.

What Is the Best Time of the Day to Drink Soda?

The best time to drink soda is “Not” to drink it at all, But I know you are addicted to soda, and you are trying to stop. You can drink soda during this time of day.

Drink Soda in the morning before you go to work or exercise; in the morning, there are enough activities.  You can go for exercise to burn enough calories.

Drink soda a few hours before bed to reduce the effects of caffeine in your body; the caffeine would have decreased before you decided to go to bed.

Try to avoid drinking soda every day, and if you feel like drinking, one can of soda is enough.

What Should You Drink Before Bed?

It Is good to stay hydrated throughout the day, and it is good to drink lots of water every time. If you are trying to take a lot of caffeine into your body, you can try the alternatives below.

Herbal Tea

How Drinking Soda Before Bed Affects Your Sleep?

Herbal teas are medicinal. They protect the body from infections. Herbal teas are also a solution to the lack of sleep. According to most reviews, Earth 2 Humans is specifically formulated to help improve sleeping cycles. It is a unique blend of herbal ingredients to enhance the quality and restfulness of your sleep.

Milk

How Drinking Soda Before Bed Affects Your Sleep?

Milk is good to get you to sleep without any side effects but is not what you think, gulping a full jar of milk before bed isn’t going to work. Almond milk, malted milk, or goat milk will get you sleeping. They contain minerals that release melatonin which induces sleep.

Cherry Juice

How Drinking Soda Before Bed Affects Your Sleep?

Juice can get you to sleep naturally, cherry juice for instance improves sleep time. Cherry juice contains amino acid which produces melatonin, it regulates sleeping and waking up. Cherry can be sweet, sour, or tart. Cherries contain six times more melatonin than any fruit. You can extract the juice from the fruit of your choice.

Water

How Drinking Soda Before Bed Affects Your Sleep?

As mentioned earlier, water is essential to the body, and you must drink a lot of water- it helps you stay hydrated. It helps food digestion. If you are planning to quit soda, a necessary step I would love you to take today. Replace your soda with water as soon as possible.

Final Thoughts

Six hours of sleep is enough for you every day, especially when you are old. Avoid soda as it contains caffeine to prevent sleeping, and embrace drinking a lot of water as much as you can. If the option provided in this article doesn’t work for you, visit your doctor.

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