Having frequent nightmares? Maybe your midnight snack is responsible, says new study
The study, published in Frontiers in Psychology in July 1, 2025, states that people with lactose intolerance are more likely to have bad dreams at night if they consume dairy products as a late-night snack
Ever been jolted awake in the middle of the night by a terrifying nightmare? According to a recent study led by Dr Tore Nielsen from the Université de Montréal, your late-night snack might be to blame.
The research suggests that eating the wrong kinds of foods before bed could trigger disturbing dreams.
The study, published in Frontiers in Psychology in July 1, 2025, states that people with lactose intolerance are more likely to have bad dreams at night if they consume dairy products as a late-night snack. The study further noticed gastrointestinal symptoms like bloating, cramping, and gas as the missing link between what we eat and what haunts our sleep.
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Findings of the study
The study authors selected 1,000 college students for the study. The researchers observed that nearly 22% of dream-affecting foods are dairy products, mainly milk, yoghurt, cheese, and other dairy items. People with lactose intolerance scored higher in nightmare frequency and severity.
How can midnight snacks lead to nightmares?
The researchers studied this bizarre relationship and determined that it is not the midnight snack, but the discomfort caused in the body that can trigger bad dreams. The study is a first of its kind offering solid evidence on how food sensitivities can affect dream content due to real physical mechanisms that happen in the digestive tract.
Foods that affect sleep vs. foods that induce better sleep
While dairy products dominated the scores of being the worst snack to consume at night, desserts, sweets, spicy foods, meat and cereals also topped the charts. On the other hand, fruits, vegetables, and herbal teas were reported to induce healthy sleep. This study further reiterates with existing research that states that certain foods can disrupt sleep, and poor sleep can lead to nightmares.
Study's lead author Dr Tore Nielsen of Université de Montréal, in a statement said, "Experimental studies are also needed to determine if people can truly detect the effects of specific foods on dreams. We would like to run a study in which we ask people to ingest cheese products versus some control food before sleep to see if this alters their sleep or dreams."
