A new randomized controlled trial published in Frontiers in Nutrition suggests that regular almond consumption may help improve perceived sleep quality in adults experiencing poor sleep. In the five-month study, 175 adults aged 21-55 years were randomly assigned to consume either whole almonds or a calorie-matched control snack. Researchers assessed both subjective and objective measures of sleep, as well as biochemical markers.
Compared with the control group, participants who consumed almonds reported significantly better overall sleep quality, higher sleep efficiency and a shorter time to fall asleep. While most objective sleep measures did not differ significantly between groups, participants in the almond group were more likely to achieve a clinically meaningful improvement in sleep quality and showed a trend toward less wakefulness during sleep. They also had higher circulating melatonin concentrations at the end of the study.
The results of this trial suggest that incorporating almonds into the diet may be a simple dietary approach to help improve perceived sleep quality in adults experiencing poor sleep.
*This clinical trial was supported by Almond Board of California.
Reference: Desai, S. R., Pinto, L., Halbe, A., Vaidya, R. A., Udipi, S. A., & Kalita, S. Effects of Almond Consumption on Sleep Quality in Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Frontiers in Nutrition, 13, 1892442.
