Lettuce water for better sleep: Does this new TikTok trend help you sleep better at night?

While there is limited evidence to prove that lettuce water can help you sleep well, there are some tips that actually work. These are some time tested remedies that help to shut your brain at night and get a comfortable sleep:

Maintain sleep-wake cycle

Follow healthy bedtime rituals

Keep your room dark and quiet

Exercise regularly

Limit caffeine and avoid alcohol

Reduce irregular or long daytime naps

Increase bright light exposure during the day

Sip herbal tea

Have warm turmeric milk at night

Either you add it to your salad, or layer it in your sandwich, there are so many varied ways to include the nutritious and healthy lettuce to your diet. These green leaves are extremely low in calories and are a powerhouse of nutrients that make these an excellent choice for those trying to eat healthy. However a new trend has suggested an unusual use of lettuce leaves. In a new TikTok trend people are going gaga over an interesting way of including these green leaves in the diet for better sleep: Lettuce water.

At a time when social media sites dominate every decision of our lives, it is difficult not to get influenced by a new viral trend. The latest on TikTok is lettuce water with 42 million views and counting. This widely circulated and liked health hack claims to help you sleep better at night. The post has been going around for quite a time now, but its origin is still unclear.

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In one of the videos, a TikTok user Shapla Hoque steeped a clamp of iceberg lettuce in a glass of hot water along with a peppermint tea bag for some time. She removes the lettuce and tea bag and drinks the beverage. By the end of the clip, she was shown sleeping comfortably.

It seems like an easy trick to get sound sleep, especially for those who have trouble getting peaceful sleep at night. But this trend fails to validate the scientific explanation on how lettuce water can make you sleep well. Even the procedure to prepare the trending lettuce water varies in videos, making the entire thing complex to understand. Firstly, none of the videos explains how long one needs to steep the lettuce in the water. Some say 5 minutes, others say 15. Secondly, it is not clear what proportion of water and lettuce should go together.

The trend might be gaining likes on TikTok, but there is no scientific study that proves lettuce is beneficial in helping you get a good night's sleep. However, as per experts lettuce was used in folk medicine as a natural sedative and pain reliever. Lactucarium, a compound found in the milky juice secreted by wild lettuce was used to prepare dwale, a herbal anaesthetic for centuries. It is believed that this viral TikTok trend has emerged from that.

As far as science goes, there is no elaborated study that proves that lettuce can help a person sleep better. A Korean study carried out on mice suggested that lettuce extract helped the sleep for 20 minutes longer than usual, but there are many limitations to it. This does not prove that lettuce tea or water can help you get better sleep.

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Lettuce is made up of 95 per cent water, which can help to keep you hydrated and increase your daily water intake. It is loaded with Vitamin K and A that can help to strengthen your bones and improve your vision. Rich in fiber, lettuce can help to make you feel fuller and prevent constipation. It can make an excellent food item to add to your weight loss and healthy eating diet plan.