Healthy Insider podcast: A new look at ‘sleep-promoting’ ingredients

Research has shown the many benefits sleep has for every target demographic, but research has not shown that dietary ingredients can cause rid consumers of insomnia or put them to sleep faster. But perhaps, that shouldn’t be the goal of botanicals, vitamins and minerals, according to Michael Grandner, Ph.D., director of the sleep and health research program and an assistant professor in the department of psychiatry in the University of Arizona College of Medicine. Instead, supplements and functional foods help consumers optimize the rebuilding and recovery aspects of sleep. In this podcast, Grandner talks with Sandy Almendarez, editor in chief, INSIDER, about nutrition and sleep, including: • Why most consumers are taking melatonin incorrectly • How energizing ingredients, such as vitamin B12, can help benefit sleep • The problem with current research on dietary ingredients’ ability to promote sleep and where researchers can better spend their time.