Wine is a drink that many people enjoy, but it can have unexpected sleep-inducing qualities as well.
If you’ve ever had a bottle of wine and then fallen asleep on your couch or bed, this article will try to explain why this occurs.
In this post we will discuss the sleep-inducing effects of wine and whether there is any truth to the rumor about red wine making you sleepier than other types of alcohol.
Why Does Wine Make Me Sleepy?
Wine contains sleep-inducing ingredients that can cause you to fall asleep faster.
The alcohol in wine affects your brain’s ability to keep your body awake making it easier for you to sleep, so the sleepiness comes on quickly.
However, when alcohol leaves your system, there is a rebound effect where this process reverses and you feel more tired than before. This may occur several hours later when the effects of the drink are no longer present or active in your body.
Consequently. when you awake from a wine-induced slumber, you may still feel tired and sluggish.
Light wines typically contain fewer amounts of sleep-inducing compounds than their darker counterparts because they have been filtered which removes these properties from them. These sleep-inducing components include melatonin (a hormone) and adenosine (a neurotransmitter). This also explains why red wines typically make people feel sleepier than white or Rosé varieties.
If you’re looking for something that will contribute towards improved sleep hygiene try having some light dinner and a glass of wine about two hours before going to sleep, as this is when the red wine sleep-inducing ingredients are at their strongest and have been shown capable of optimal absorption during digestion timeframes which maximize its benefits along with other healthy lifestyle routines such as regular exercise and eating properly.
Melatonin and Alcohol
Scientists believe that there is a link between sleepiness and alcohol consumption, and red wine in particular contains compounds that can make you drowsy.
One of these compounds is melatonin. Melatonin is a hormone produced by the brain that helps regulate sleep cycles, and it’s thought that the amount of melatonin present in different types of wine can affect how tired you feel after drinking it.
Red wines tend to have higher levels of melatonin than white wine does, so they may be more likely to cause sleepiness. This doesn’t mean that all red wines will make you sleepier, though; the amount of alcohol content is likely to be a bigger factor.
Alcohol interferes with sleep by disrupting the sleep cycle and increasing light sleep stages (which are not as restorative) at the expense of deep sleep phases.
Alcohol also acts on GABA A receptors in the brain which can cause relaxation and drowsiness, making it easier to fall asleep quickly but decreasing overall sleep quality.
Wine is Not a Sleep Aid
While wine can make you sleepier, it does not act as a sleep aid. If you are looking for ways to improve your sleep quality and quantity, try using sleep aids like valerian root which is a natural supplement that helps regulate the sleep cycle.
If you find yourself waking up during the night after drinking red wine (or other alcohol), consider spacing out drinks with dinner by at least two hours so that there is less of an overlap between when the effects kick in and when bedtime occurs.
You should also avoid having high-fat foods before going to bed because they take longer to digest than lighter fare such as vegetables and cereals – especially if these fatty items have been washed down with booze.
We’ve all been there, and it can be frustrating to feel like we had a few too many glasses of wine.
But what is the reason for this post-wine fatigue? It turns out that alcohol affects our sleep hormones and disrupts REM (rapid eye movement) sleep patterns.
This doesn’t mean you should stop drinking; instead, make sure your last drink is at least two hours before bedtime or switch to lighter drinks such as white wine with dinner. If these strategies don’t work for you, talk to an expert who may recommend other ways of sleeping better after consuming alcohol.