Consuming 2 tablespoons of cottage cheese before bed is beneficial for weight loss and a good night’s sleep! But, too much can make you fat or cause sleep disturbances.
What type of cottage cheese should I eat before bed?
Certainly, cottage cheese is among the healthiest types of cheese you can eat. It’s relatively low in calories, saturated fat, and added salt, while it’s high in protein.
Still, you should avoid full fat cottage cheese. It has:
- 40% more calories,
- 300% more saturated fat, and
- 350% more cholesterol than low-fat cottage cheese.[1]
Hence, low-fat (1-2%) cottage cheese is healthier for weight loss and a good night’s sleep.
However, you shouldn’t eat cottage cheese right before bed. It can affect sleep quality and make you gain weight.
Why should I eat only 2 tbsp of cottage cheese before bed?
Cottage cheese is good for you only when consumed in reasonable amounts as part of a healthy, well-balanced diet. Too much may have adverse effects.
Calories
Full-fat cottage cheese has 103 calories per 100g, or 31 calories per a 2-tbsp serving.
On the other hand, 2% cottage cheese has only 82 calories per 100g. 2 tablespoons have only 25 calories.
However, it’s easy to overconsume cottage cheese. You should be very cautious with portion sizes.
Certainly, it’s healthier to eat 2 tablespoons of cottage cheese a day instead of any other fattening cheese.
Although cottage is a low-calorie cheese, eating high amounts isn’t healthy.
Poor in vitamins & minerals
In fact, cottage cheese has a poor nutritional value. It’s low in vitamins and minerals. Too much could lead to an imbalanced diet, resulting in nutrient deficiencies.
For instance, 2 tablespoons of 1% cottage cheese have only 18 mg of calcium. This is less than 2% of the Daily Value. Calcium plays a key role in sleep latency and duration. It regulates slow-wave sleep generation. We don’t have to eat dairy for calcium. There are many plant-based foods high in calcium.[2]
Prefer adding 2 tbsp of cottage cheese to sandwiched, snacks, salads, and other recipes in order to provide flavor to nutrient-dense foods, like vegetables.
Saturated fat
Furthermore, it’s better to avoid consuming more than 2 tbsp of cottage cheese a day because it has some saturated fat. Two tablespoons of full-fat cottage cheese have 0.8 grams of saturated fat. This dose is 6% of the maximum recommended daily intake.
Too much saturated fat may raise the levels of LDL cholesterol in the blood, increasing the risk of heart disease and stroke.[3]
Also, consuming too much saturated fat before bed may negatively affect sleep quality.[4]
Almost all other cheeses have significantly more saturated fat, though. For instance, cheddar cheese has 19 grams of saturated fat per 100g!
Cholesterol
Moreover, full-fat cottage cheese has some cholesterol. It has 18 mg of cholesterol per 100g, or 5.4 grams per 2 tablespoons.
All animal-based foods, and cheeses in particular, are high in cholesterol. We shouldn’t overconsume such foods.
According to studies, sleep disturbance can induce increased serum cholesterol levels.[5]
Trans fat
Moreover, we should eat in moderation cottage cheese because it has some trans fat. Actually, it has about 0.14 grams of trans fat per 100g.[6]
Trans fats are found in animal-derided and most processed foods. They’re very dangerous for health. They significantly increase the risk of heart disease, as they raise LDL-cholesterol levels, while lowering good HDL-cholesterol levels.[7]
Cottage cheese is among animal-derived foods with the lowest concentrations of trans fats, though.
Sodium
In addition, we should eat reasonable amounts of cottage cheese because it’s a highly processed food. In fact, it has added salt. More cottage cheeses have between 320 and 420 mg of sodium per 100g.
According to the American Heart Association, healthy people shouldn’t consume more than 1,500 mg of sodium a day. People with high blood pressure should consume even less sodium.[8]
In most cases, 2 tablespoons of cottage cheese have up to 130 mg of sodium. This dose is 9% of the maximum recommended daily intake.
Foods with less than 140 mg of sodium per serving are considered low-sodium foods!
Although cottage cheese is a low-sodium food, high amounts can be unhealthy for those with a sensitivity to salt.
Moreover, high sodium intakes may have a detrimental effect on obstructive sleep apnea, mainly due to higher fluid retention.[9]
Lactose Intolerance
Furthermore, people intolerant to lactose may benefit from limiting to the minimum the consumption of cottage cheese. Even 2 tablespoons may could result in digestive issues such as bloating or gas.
Digestive disorders have been associated with poor sleep quality.[10]
