I found that pork belly improved my sleep. Pork belly is mainly fat, but is it as simple as that (pork fat improves sleep)? Thomas Seay brought to my attention claims about gelatin by Ray Peat. One was that it improved his sleep:
For years I hadn’t slept through a whole night without waking, and I was in the habit of having some juice or a little thyroid to help me go back to sleep. The first time I had several grams of [commercial] gelatin just before bedtime, I slept without interruption for about 9 hours.
Seay tried gelatin himself and found it improved his sleep. I asked him about this.
What do you do?
I take Great Lakes Unflavored Gelatin. I take about 5 or 6 tablespoons a day (2 tablespoons per meal) usually in hot water. So, that amounts to about 35-42 grams/day. You can also put it in juice or make an aspic with it. Another person I know who takes it only needs to take two tablespoons a day, just prior to sleep.
What effect has it had?
It helps me to sleep more hours uninterrupted. This did not require a build-up over weeks. It happened the first time I took it.
You sound like you’ve stopped taking it. How long did you take it? Why did you stop?
I have taken it off and on. (Usually I would take it one week on, one week off). I have noticed that after a few days it causes constipation FOR ME. Another person I know who has tried it has not noticed this effect. Presently I am experimenting with segmented sleep (getting up for an hour or two in the night and then returning to sleep), so I have stopped taking any sort of supplement, including the gelatin. Prior to this, I had done the gelatin for about 4 months.
When I make bone stocks, I always add extra articular joints (e.g., chicken feet for chicken stock, beef knuckle for beef stock, etc.). Adding these dramatically increases the gelatin content of the resulting stock, which I think greatly improves its quality. Along with cod-liver oil and vitamin D3, bone stock is my go-to food when my kids have colds, though I use it all the time in my cooking.
i was thinking that cow-foot soup was probably common in china as it is in many parts of the world. i can’t stand the stuff, but i see it in various places.