For many years, I have had a very difficult time sleeping! 10 years ago I was prescribed sleeping medicine to help me sleep. Little did I know back then how terrible these were for you and how hard it is to get off of medicine for sleeping. As I made my journey to a healthier lifestyle, I knew it was time to get off of this medicine. With the help of Chris Dillon of Nu-Health Strategies, I have been able to do just that!
Today I am going to share a recipe that Chris Dillon created for me that helps me sleep naturally. I have a glass of this drink every night and it really helps me relax and get sleepy and more importantly, it helps me stay asleep! Here are the ingredients; Bedtime tea, unrefined sea salt, natural sugar (raw honey, sucanat etc…), gelatin and fat.
There are several elements to this drink and Chris explains why it is necessary to include each ingredient in this recipe.
Salt: Salt brings down adrenalin and other stress hormones. The reason why people have trouble falling asleep or wake up in the middle of the night is due to stress hormones being elevated. Salt downregulates their actions.
Sugar: Honey or sugar is a disaccharide (glucose and fructose). Fructose inhibits glucose from blood sugar to spike. Glucose by itself will cause blood sugar handling issues. This is why honey, sugar, and fruit will not spike blood sugar. When you sleep, you are fasting and you need reserved glycogen stored in your liver to help maintain balanced blood sugar levels while you sleep. When our blood sugar drops, it raises our stress hormones and causes us to wake up. Having a sugar reserve helps prevent this from happening along with the salt to control adrenaline rising.
Gelatin: Gelatin is a protein that is high in proline and glycine which helps counteract tryptophan and cysteine’s stressful effects on the brain. Glycine is recognized as an “inhibitory” neurotransmitter and promotes natural sleep. Tryptophan is the precursor to serotonin, which causes inflammation.
Fat: Fats like heavy cream, milk, cheese and so forth help balance the ratios of proteins and carbs in the tea. The fats help keep blood sugar balanced.
I should also note that “bedtime tea” does state to consult your healthcare provider prior to use if you are pregnant or nursing, taking any medication or if you have a medical condition. You can also choose a green tea, red tea, white tea etc…just make sure that there is no caffeine in the tea and that the tea is a right fit for you.
You can play around with this recipe to see which amounts suit you, but it is very important to have all of these elements to create a restful night’s sleep. Give it a try and let me know how your night’s sleep was!
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My Bedtime Drink That Guarantees A Restful Night’s Sleep!
Prep Time: 2 minutes- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 7 minutes
Yield: 1 serving 1x
Category: drink
Method: stovetop
Cuisine: american
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
Learn how to make a bedtime drink that creates a restful nights sleep!
Ingredients
- 1 teabag of bedtime tea
- 16 oz of filtered water
- 1/4–1/2 tsp unrefined sea salt
- 1/4–1/2 tsp natural sugar (sucanat, raw honey, etc..)
- 1 tbsp gelatin from a grass fed source
- 2–3 tsp half and half, heavy cream, raw milk
Instructions
- Heat water in a kettle.
- Add all ingredients to your cup except your cream and tea bag.
- Pour hot water into your cup and stir.
- Add cream and tea bag and let steep for 5 minutes.
- Remove tea bag and drink.
About Chris Dillon
Chris Dillon is a Chek Practitioner, Holistic Nutrition & Lifestyle Coach, Metabolic Typing Advisor and a Massage Therapist. Chris has helped thousands of people to understand health and nutrition better. He is very passionate about educating people about health. I have learned a ton from Chris!
Don’t have all the ingredients? No problem! Click on the links below to see where you can purchase them.
Halle why do you choose this gelatin over the green can.. I get really confused over which one to order.
@MissyWilson this is the only can that you can buy 1 single can and it will work fine because it is being dissolved in hot liquids. I use the green can because I buy gelatin in bulk…but if you are just trying this out I recommend you just buying one can v/s 6 cans. Make sense Missy?
Yes..I usually buy the bulk because my family uses it. I just was wondering the difference.benifits. My Mom has had hip replacement and on her way for knee replacement and wanted to make sure I chose the right one.
@MissyWilson If you buy in bulk already, then go with the green can, it dissolve in hot and cold liquids.
@MissyWilson check out their website Missy for the answers to your questions 🙂 http://www.greatlakesgelatin.com/consumer/generalInfo.php
Wow, who actually believes that honey, sugar and fruit will not spike blood sugar? I have an igloo in Alaska on the market…
Who said anything about fruit? 1/4 teaspoon of truly Raw Honey (even sucanat) can actually REPAIR a blood sugar problem by providing the co nutrients needed for absorption! Plus using unprocessed salt (my favorite is redmonds Real Salt) also offers the co nutrients needed for absorption. Just sayin’
Hey Lori, I believe when it is properly balanced with fat and protein it is fine to consume as it is in this tea.
Sure a little sweetener is fine for adding taste, but the statement about blood sugar is pretty irresponsible.
Chris Dillon follows the teaching of Ray Peat. I am sure he can expand on it a bit…
I am grateful you and Chris have shared this! I have used this for awhile, as well. I haven’t had Xanax to sleep in almost a year! Lori, what she mentioned about the natural sugars goes against everything I have been taught (I have been in healthcare 16 yrs) but like Halle said, when balanced appropriately, it works. Chris helped me with an issue recently, getting off ADD meds and it was all about balance.
Lori, unless you truly understand how the physiolgy of the body works, don’t say I am being irresponsible. Do some research: http://raypeat.com/articles/articles/glycemia.shtml
I am going to have to try this- I have no problem falling asleep, just staying asleep (have been this way since age 10)
I am telling you Joy, I have my this drink at 9 PM and am fast asleep by 10/10:30 PM and I don’t wake up until 6 AM (I always wake up with the birds 🙂
ty..i cant wait to try this..love your site..alway great information we can trust
keep in mind the yogi tea label warnings- the herbs in this tea are what creates the drowsiness and should not be used by everyone. You did not address this at all about bedtime tea. There are people who are on medications that should use caution. gelatin, cream, sugar all contribute to the proten, fat, carb that will keep you asleep for reasons detailed in this post.This recipe is great for othewise healthy persons but as with anything each person needs to pay attention to their individual sensitivities. (sugar, dairy, etc)