The Best Vitamins for Sleep: Our Experts Weigh in

Table of Contents

We know that diet and sleep are deeply connected. But the truth is, we don’t know nearly enough yet about how individual nutrients impact our sleep. Here, I look at 5 vitamins that appear to play a role in how much sleep we get and how restful and high-quality that sleep is. As you’ll see, several of these vitamins may affect our risk of sleep disorders, including insomnia and sleep apnea. And at least two of them appear to play a role in regulating our circadian rhythms, the 24-hour bio rhythms that control our sleep-wake cycles.

I’m a big believer in leveraging a healthy diet to improve sleep. Often, diet alone doesn’t give us all the nutrients we need. Supplements can play an important role in filling those gaps.

But before you run out and add the vitamins below to your supplement list, I encourage you to do two things. Look for ways to improve your vitamin intake through your diet. And talk to your doctor. Getting the dosing—and the timing—of supplement intake is critical to success, when it comes to sleep.

Many of us know Vitamin D for its role in bone health. It’s also important for regulating mood, supporting immune function, and helping to control inflammation. Vitamin D is catching a lot of interest for its potential benefits for sleep—and for the sleep consequences that accompany Vitamin D deficiencies. There’s new research that is adding to our understanding of how this vitamin—and a lack of it—may affect our nightly rest.

• Sleep quality and sleep quantity: There’s a growing body of research showing Vitamin D affects both how much sleep we get and how well we sleep. A recent study found Vitamin D deficiency linked to short sleep duration. This study found the links between insufficient sleep and lack of Vitamin D to be especially strong in adults age 50 and older. More than half of the people included in this study were deficient in Vitamin D. That aligns with other research that shows a majority of Americans may be lacking in Vitamin D. In 2018, scientists at China’s Qingdao University analyzed the findings of several studies that looked at Vitamin D’s role in sleep. Their analysis identified significant connections between low levels of Vitamin D and a lack of sleep. They also found low levels of Vitamin D were connected to poor sleep quality.
• Sleep apnea: Several recent studies have shown a connection between Vitamin D deficiency and risk of sleep apnea. A lack of Vitamin D may also affect the severity of sleep apnea, with lower D levels linked to more severe cases of OSA in several recent studies. Some good news on the sleep apnea front: research investigating the standard treatment for sleep apnea—CPAP, or continuous, positive airway pressure—has found that long-term CPAP use is connected to a significant increase in Vitamin D levels, along with significant improvements to sleep apnea symptoms.
• Bio-clock timing: Vitamin D may influence sleep at least in part by helping to regulate our circadian clocks. Light and darkness, are the primary regulators of our internal bio clocks. Sunlight is also our single best source of Vitamin D. It looks as though Vitamin D may be a part of the mechanism by which sunlight keep our bio clocks—and our daily sleep cycles—running in sync.

Sunlight, not diet, is the number one source of Vitamin D. The body produces its own Vitamin D, in response to exposure to sunlight. For this reason, Vitamin D isn’t actually considered a vitamin at all, but rather is classified as a hormone. Beyond sun exposure, people also receive Vitamin D through foods—fatty fish and fish oils, egg yolks, as well as fortified foods like dairy and juice.

A powerful antioxidant, Vitamin E helps maintain healthy cell function and protect cells from damage. Foods containing higher amounts of Vitamin E include many nuts and seeds, as well as spinach, broccoli, tomatoes, wheat germ oil, corn and soybean oils. Vitamin E’s antioxidant capabilities may also help sleep and sleep-related health problems.

• Sleep-related memory protection: One effect of sleep deprivation is trouble with memory. During sleep, including both slow-wave sleep and REM sleep, the brain processes memories and our newly acquired learning. When we’re short on sleep, we can encounter problems with both short and long-term memory recall. Thanks to its antioxidant capabilities, Vitamin E offers protection for the health and function of the brain. And research indicates this vitamin might offer specific protection against the memory impairment from sleep loss. A 2012 study found that Vitamin E reduced memory loss in sleep-deprived rats. Vitamin E appears to work by protecting the function of the hippocampus, an area of the brain that is critical to memory consolidation. Research has shown sleep deprivation is highly disruptive to activity of the hippocampus.
• Sleep apnea: People with sleep apnea often have low levels of Vitamin E. Elevating levels of this vitamin may help to improve Studies have shown that Vitamin E, in combination with Vitamin C and other antioxidants, can improve nighttime breathing and sleep quality in people with obstructive sleep apnea.
• Sleep-related hormone protection: Maintaining healthy levels of Vitamin E may protect testosterone production from the effects of sleep deprivation. A lack of sleep has been linked to lower testosterone levels.

Another antioxidant powerhouse, Vitamin C is the vitamin many of us associate most strongly with immune health. It’s also important for cardiovascular health, and necessary for the body to make collagen, which is critical for healthy bones, teeth and skin. Citrus fruits are rich sources of Vitamin C, as are broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, kale, spinach, green and red chilis, strawberries, and kiwi. Vitamin C’s health-promoting abilities may also extend to sleep.

• Sleep apnea: On its own and in combination with other antioxidants, Vitamin C has been shown to improve the symptoms of obstructive sleep apnea. A 2009 study showed that a combination of Vitamin C (100 mg) and Vitamin E (400 IU) taken twice daily reduced episodes of apnea, and also improved sleep quality and decreased daytime sleepiness. Some research indicates that Vitamin C may improve endothelial function in people with OSA, potentially relieving some of the stress that this sleep disorder puts on the cardiovascular system.
• To increase sleep amounts and sleep quality: Low intake of Vitamin C has been connected to shorter sleep amounts. This 2013 study by scientists at the University of Pennsylvania found that short sleepers—people who slept less than 6 hours a night—consumed less Vitamin C than people who consumed more of the vitamin. Lower levels of Vitamin C as measured in blood were also linked to more nightly sleep disturbance and a greater risk for sleep disorders.
• For memory protection: Similar to vitamin E, Vitamin C has been shown to offer protection for the brain against the memory losses associated with sleep deprivation.

Vitamin B6 is involved in many functions in the body. It supports immune health, and aids in cognitive development and function. There’s evidence that B6 also aids sleep—and affects our dreams.

• Dream recall: I wrote recently about lucid dreams, a form of dreaming in which the sleeper has awareness of being in a dream, and in some cases can control the action of their dreams. There’s always a lot of interest in lucid dreams—people are particularly interested in finding ways to induce lucid dreaming. A 2018 study at Australia’s University of Adelaide found that Vitamin B6 may help people increase their ability to remember their dreams. People with stronger dream recall are more likely to have lucid dream experiences.
• Melatonin and serotonin production: A lack of Vitamin B6 has been linked to symptoms of insomnia and depression. Vitamin B6 aids in the production of the hormones serotonin and melatonin, both of which are important to sound, restful sleep, and also to mood. There’s a strong correlation between depression and sleep problems. Among people with depression, 75 percent or more also have symptoms of insomnia. (Not everyone with depression experiences insomnia or short sleep. A smaller number of people sleep excessively, a disorder known as hypersomnia. Hypersomnia is particularly common in teenagers and young adults with depression.) In studies of older adults, higher intake of Vitamin B6 been connected to lower risk for depression.  

Bananas, carrots, spinach, potatoes are great sources of B6, as are milk, eggs, cheese, fish, and whole grains. If you’re considering a B6 supplement, it’s important to work with your doctor to find the right dose. Excessive levels of Vitamin B6 can be toxic and has also been linked to insomnia.

Vitamin B12 is important for brain function, supporting cardiovascular health including red blood cell formation, and in supporting DNA activity. Vitamin B12 is found in animal protein dietary sources, including dairy, eggs, meat, fish and shellfish. Here’s what we know about its effects on sleep.

• As a sleep-wake regulator: The role of Vitamin B12 is interesting. Several studies have demonstrated that this vitamin is involved in regulating sleep-wake cycles by helping to keep circadian rhythms in sync. At the same time, the influence of B12 directly on sleep isn’t clear. Higher levels of Vitamin B12 have been connected to a lower risk of depression. Circadian rhythm disruptions are a significant underlying factor for depression. It may be that Vitamin B12 is specifically useful for people with sleep-wake disruptions, including in people who also have symptoms of depression. But we need more research to better understand how Vitamin B12 influences sleep.

The closer we stick to a diet of diverse, whole, unprocessed foods, the more of these vitamins we’ll pick up naturally. (And don’t forget to get out in the sun for your vitamin D fix!) These are some of the simplest, most important sleep habits we can adopt.

About The Author

Dr. Michael Breus

Clinical Psychologist, Sleep Medicine Expert

---

Michael Breus, Ph.D is a Diplomate of the American Board of Sleep Medicine and a Fellow of The American Academy of Sleep Medicine and one of only 168 psychologists to pass the Sleep Medical Specialty Board without going to medical school. He holds a BA in Psychology from Skidmore College, and PhD in Clinical Psychology from The University of Georgia. Dr. Breus has been in private practice as a sleep doctor for nearly 25 years. Dr. Breus is a sought after lecturer and his knowledge is shared daily in major national media worldwide including Today, Dr. Oz, Oprah, and for fourteen years as the sleep expert on WebMD. Dr. Breus is also the bestselling author of The Power of When, The Sleep Doctor’s Diet Plan, Good Night!, and Energize!

• POSITION: Combination Sleeper
• TEMPERATURE: Hot Sleeper
• CHRONOTYPE: Wolf

Ask the Sleep Doctor

Have questions about sleep? Submit them here! We use your questions to help us decide topics for future articles, videos, and newsletters. We try to answer as many questions as possible. You can also send us an email. Please note, we cannot provide specific medical advice, and always recommend you contact your doctor for any medical matters.