Yes — boiled banana water is a simple bedtime drink, but the claim that it will make everyone sleep amazingly is stronger than the scientific evidence supports. There is some evidence that eating a banana at bedtime may help sleep, while evidence specifically for banana-boiling water is lacking. A small 2024 study found that a bedtime serving of banana improved sleep-quality scores in people with insomnia, but it was only a 21-person study.
🍌 Boiled Banana Sleep Drink — Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 ripe banana
- 2 cups (about 475 mL) water
- Optional: a small pinch of cinnamon
- Optional: ½ teaspoon honey for taste
How to make it
- Wash the banana thoroughly.
- Cut off both ends. You can leave the peel on, or peel the banana if you prefer.
- Cut the banana into 2–3 pieces.
- Bring 2 cups of water to a boil.
- Add the banana pieces.
- Reduce the heat and gently simmer for 8–10 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and strain the liquid into a cup.
- Let it cool until comfortably warm.
- If desired, add a little cinnamon or honey.
- Drink it about 30–60 minutes before bedtime.
You can also eat the cooked banana rather than throwing it away. That gives you considerably more of the banana’s nutrients than drinking only the strained water.
😴 Why might banana help with sleep?
Bananas provide nutrients such as magnesium and potassium, and they also contain tryptophan. Magnesium has been investigated in relation to sleep, but systematic reviews conclude that the evidence is still uncertain, particularly from randomized trials.
There is also some human evidence specifically involving bedtime bananas: a small study of people with primary insomnia found improved Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index scores after bedtime banana consumption. However, this does not prove that boiled banana water itself treats insomnia.
🌙 Possible benefits
- May be a relaxing, warm bedtime beverage.
- Provides some nutrients associated with normal nervous-system function.
- Banana itself supplies potassium and magnesium.
- A small amount of carbohydrate may make it a satisfying bedtime snack.
- It is naturally caffeine-free.
- It can be a healthier alternative to sugary or caffeinated nighttime drinks.
However, nutrition studies overall show mixed evidence for using specific foods as a treatment for sleep problems, so it shouldn’t be considered a guaranteed sleep remedy.
⚠️ A couple of important points
Don’t expect the water to contain all of the banana’s nutrients. Much of the nutrition remains in the banana rather than transferring into the water. If your goal is nutrition, eating the cooked banana is more useful.
Also, if you have kidney disease or have been told to restrict potassium, check with your healthcare professional before deliberately increasing your banana/potassium intake.
If you regularly have difficulty falling asleep, wake frequently, or feel very tired during the day, banana water shouldn’t replace evaluation for an underlying sleep problem.