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Healthy Diet Plans >>  What to eat >>  What to eat for dinner >>  Dinner Food Ideas

Dinner Food Ideas


Food and nutrition experts recommend that you should watch what you eat for dinner, in order to make sure that you sleep well. When you go to bed, your stomach should neither be too full, not completely empty. The best time for dinner, is at least three hours before you go to bed. This is because the digestive system does not work properly when you are asleep and a full stomach could lead to several interruptions while you sleep. This results in poor quality of sleep, which leaves you feeling tired and exhausted when you wake up in the morning.
Eating a big or a heavy dinner may induce temporary drowsiness, but it also increases the time required to digest the food. Therefore, to improve the quality of your sleep, you need to ensure that your dinner is your lightest meal of the day. It is alright to have an evening snack (that does not exceed 500 calories), and then stick to healthy dinner foods like fish, extra lean meat or chicken, along with some vegetables or a salad (without creamy dressings) on the side to curb any mid-night snack attacks. You could also include the whole-grain variety of breads or pastas if necessary, as they are high in fiber, which can help unclog your body and make you feel full for a longer time.

Dinner should consist of meats and vegetables that are steamed, grilled or baked. Options like pizza, white pasta, fried foods, or foods that contain sugar, a lot of oil, fat or spices should be avoided, as they usually cause digestive problems, which can disrupt your sleep. Make sure that you eat small portions, which makes it easier for your body to digest the food. Eat in moderation, - eat till you are satisfied, but not overfull.

There are several quick and easy recipes that can be a part of good dinner food ideas, which include – grilled vegetable pitas with or without added meat, a garden salad with grilled chicken, toasted or grilled sandwiches (whole wheat bread), or tofu stir fry or salad. You could also try sautéed shrimp with peppers, a BLT salad or sandwich, smoked turkey, garden vegetable gazpacho, salmon with a light sauce, and a grilled tuna fish salad. Other excellent dinner options would include cilantro lime flank steak, balsamic Dijon chicken, spinach fettuccine with minced meat and vegetables, stuffed peppers (without cheese or potatoes), and clear soup. Plan your dinner to include a moderate portion of such healthy food options.
Submitted on April 6, 2011