Melatonin is a compound useful for a variety of conditions, including sleeplessness, viral and bacterial infections, cancer, sexual dysfunction and heart disease. Your physician may prescribe supplements to help you take in more melatonin, but you can change your diet to boost your melatonin intake as well.
Rice
Incorporating rice into your diet helps you take in more melatonin. A study published in the March 1995 issue of the journal "Biochemistry and Molecular Biology International" indicates that plants in the rice family contain one of the highest levels of melatonin. Rice has been shown to help study participants fall asleep faster, due in part to its ability to increase blood concentration of tryptophan, a compound that may form melatonin. This study, available in the February 2007 "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition," notes that eating jasmine or mahatma rice four hours prior to bedtime is most effective.
Barley
Barley is a source of melatonin, according to research featured in the fall 2002 edition of the "Journal of Medicinal Food." The amount of this compound in barley may depend on the conditions under which it is grown, however. A study in the October 2008 "Journal of Food and Agricultural Chemistry" notes that the quantity of melatonin in barley is affected by the age of the plant as well as the amount of light the plants are exposed to.
Bananas
Bananas contain melatonin and may improve your ability to sleep. Research featured in the July 2010 "Nature Precedings" indicates that more serotonin is found in the banana peel compared to the flesh; you get more serotonin in both the flesh and the peel when a banana is completely ripe. Most people do not consume the banana peel, but it is edible --- banana peel can be used to make chutney, cakes and many ethnic recipes.
Tomatoes
A study available in the August 2011 issue of the journal "Food Chemistry" indicates that the Bond, Borsalina, Catalina, Gordal, Lucinda, Marbone, Myriade, Pitenza, Santonio, Perlino, Platero and RAF tomato varieties are sources of melatonin. The University of Maryland Medical Center indicates that some evidence supports the consumption of melatonin prior to bedtime to control irritable bowel syndrome; if tomatoes do not trigger your IBS symptoms, consider adding them to your diet for this purpose.
References
- "Biochemical and Molecular Biology International"; Identification of Melatonin in Plants and Its Effects on Plasma Melatonin Levels and Binding to Melatonin Receptors in Vertebrates; A. Hattori, et al.; March 1995
- "The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition"; High-Glycemic-Index Carbohydrate Meals Shorten Sleep Onset; A. Afaghi, et al.; February 2007
- AARP; Aging; 2002
- "Journal of Medicinal Food"; Melatonin, Serotonin and Tryptamine In Some Egyptian Food and Medicinal Plants; F.A. Badria; Fall 2002
- "Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry"; Distribution of Melatonin in Different Zones of Lupin and Barley Plants at Different Ages in the Presence and Absence of Light; J. Hernandez-Ruiz, et al.; October 2008
- Fit Sugar; Foods to Sleep On; January 2007
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