Sweet dreams are made of cheese!

Sweet dreams are made of cheese, who am I to diss a Brie?


According to a 2005 research study by the British Cheese Board, eating cheese before bedtime could help you sleep.


Apparently for decades parents have warned their children not to have cheese before bedtime to prevent bad dreams (I can honestly say I have never had this problem nor did my “cheese head” parents worry about this kind of thing!). It is not clear where the cheese and nightmares myth originated however some speculation has it linked to Charles Dickens’ character Scrooge who blamed “a crumb of cheese” on his night-time visitations in A Christmas Carol.


But researchers have disproved this old wife’s tale and in fact found that cheese could actually aid in a good nights’ sleep (which also begs the question who pays for or more importantly how does one get paid to do this kind of research?).


The study, involved 200 volunteers in a week-long experiment (which also begs the question as to how I can volunteer for a study like this!). The good news is that no nasty dreams were reported following a late night cheese snack.


After eating a 20g piece of cheese 30 minutes before going to sleep, 72 per cent of the volunteers slept very well every night (I think this alone should be reason enough to have a late night cheese snack!), just over two thirds remembered their dreams and none reported nightmares.


Dr Judith Bryans, a nutrition scientist at The Dairy Council, said: “One of the amino acids in cheese – tryptophan – has been shown to reduce stress and induce sleep, so the conclusion is that cheese may actually help you have a good night’s sleep.”


And if those findings weren’t enough to get you to eat more cheese they also reported that the type of cheese you choose can affect the dreams you have.


75 per cent of men and 85 per cent of women eating Stilton experienced odd and vivid dreams (and we should be surprised because…?.


If you want a star-studded dream then your best bet is cheddar. Almost two-thirds of volunteers eating cheddar reported dreaming about celebrities (if you talk in your sleep cheddar might be a choice to avoid or as Ricky Ricardo used to say you may have some “splainin to do!).


Or if you are feeling nostalgic then try Red Leicester. More than six out of 10 volunteers eating this cheese had nostalgic dreams about their past, including school days and childhood friends.


Brie tended to give women nice dreams, such as Jamie Oliver cooking dinner in their kitchen, while the men had odd dreams such as having a drunken conversation with a dog. (again, if you talk in your sleep this might be a choice to avoid!)


If you just fancy a good night’s sleep then Cheshire cheese could be for you. Over half of the volunteers eating this type had completely dreamless nights(Especially a good choice for those sleep talkers!).


Neil Stanley, PhD director of sleep research at the University of Surrey, said: “The Cheese and Dream study is the first study of its kind and suggests that eating cheese before you go to bed may actually aid a good night’s sleep. Selecting the type of cheese you eat before bedtime may help determine the very nature of often colourful and vivid cheese-induced dreams.”(Who knew?!)


Nigel White, secretary of the British Cheese Board, said: “We hope that people will think more positively about eating cheese before bed.” (As do I! Enjoy!)