It’s Okay to Have a Late-Night Snack—Just Make Sure It Checks These 3 Boxes

“The key is finding balance and not overindulging, and watching portion size—especially later in the evening.” —Rebecca Ditkoff, RD

Rebecca Ditkoff, MPH, RD, CDN, and founder of health-coaching company Nutrition by RD tells HuffPost that the main goal of your moonlight-munchies sesh should be to keep you full until the a.m., adding that it's best to be mindful about the late-night noshing since a too-full stomach can lead to indigestion, which can cause poor sleep quality. “I’m a believer in listening to your body and honoring cravings,” Ditkoff says. “The key is finding balance and not overindulging, and watching portion size—especially later in the evening.” So, to help make sure your self-care habits support your health and happiness, you'll need to whip up something with one or a combo of three macronutrients:

1. protein
2. whole grain, fibrous carbohydrates
3. healthy fats.

Translation: Pumpkin-seed-topped avocado toast, Greek-yogurt with a bit nut butter and a sprinkle of granola, or a small serving of red lentil penne are all fair game.

These nutritional-powerhouse snacks aim to stave off your hunger until breakfast. But your whole-grain toast in particular also comes with the added bonus of triggering an insulin release in your body, which supports the production of tryptophan—an amino acid that helps you produce melatonin, which helps to control the quality of your sleep.

So no, your Lorelai and Rory Gilmore–style movie-night snack spread and #healthgoals are not mutually exclusive. Well, so long as you swap the Pop Tarts for sweet potato blondies, that is.

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