7 Foods That Drain Your Energy

Your energy levels go up and down during the day. This is normal.

Many things affect how energetic you feel. Your sleep, stress, activity level, and the foods you eat all matter.

Some foods can actually drain your energy instead of boosting it. In this article, we’ll look at seven foods that may leave you feeling tired.

Foods That Drain Your Energy

These foods can sap your energy in different ways. Some mess with your blood sugar. Others ruin your sleep or slow down your metabolism.

1. Refined Carbs and Added Sugars

Refined carbs and added sugars are big energy drainers. White bread, pastries, candy, and sugary drinks fit this group.

These foods lack fiber. When grains are processed, the fiber-rich outer layer gets removed (1).

Without fiber, your body digests these foods fast. Your blood sugar shoots up, then crashes down.

High-fiber cereals help your body remove glucose from your blood faster (2). This means your body has to work harder when you eat refined carbs.

Research links refined carbs to metabolism problems. Eating lots of refined carbs causes big swings in blood sugar and insulin. These swings may hurt your metabolism and drain your energy (3).

Simple and refined carbs hurt your mood. They can make you less alert and more tired (4).

Common sources include white bread, white rice, pastries, candy, soft drinks, and many breakfast cereals. Pick whole grain options instead to keep your energy steady.

2. Alcohol

Alcohol makes you feel relaxed. Many people drink it to unwind or help them sleep.

But alcohol ruins your sleep quality. This makes you tired the next day.

Alcohol messes with your sleep, even in small amounts. You may fall asleep faster, but you wake up more in the second half of the night (5).

Alcohol acts like a sedative. It affects brain chemicals that control sleep. Drinking a lot before bed leads to bad sleep later in the night (6).

A study of over 11,000 people found a clear pattern. The more alcohol you drink, the worse your sleep. Heavy drinkers slept less and snored more (7).

Another study found that men who drank more had worse sleep in every way (8).

To avoid drained energy, drink in moderation. That means one drink or less per day for women. For men, it’s two or less.

3. Coffee and Too Much Caffeine

Coffee gives you a quick boost. But too much caffeine or bad timing can hurt you.

Your body gets used to caffeine fast. Regular caffeine users stop feeling its effects after a few weeks (9).

Even small daily amounts of caffeine can cause tolerance. One study found that drinking caffeine every day wiped out its performance boost (10).

Daily caffeine caused high blood pressure that took 8 days to go away. Other problems like nervousness, trouble sleeping, and peeing more stayed even after 20 days (11).

Caffeine ruins sleep, even hours before bed. Caffeine 6 hours before bedtime cut sleep time (12).

A big review found you need to stop coffee at least 9 hours before bed to protect your sleep (13).

Regular caffeine use hurts sleep and makes you tired during the day. Your body can become dependent on caffeine at low doses (14).

One study found that regular caffeine delays deep REM sleep and makes waking up harder. Men who drank 150 mg of caffeine three times daily had more trouble waking up and felt more tired (15).

Stick to four cups of coffee or less per day. Stop caffeine at least 9 hours before you go to bed.

4. Energy Drinks

Energy drinks give you a quick boost. But they come with big problems.

Energy drinks cause sleep issues. A study of U.S. soldiers found that 45% drank at least one energy drink daily. Another 14% drank three or more per day (16).

People who drank three or more energy drinks daily slept 4 hours or less. They woke up more at night and fell asleep during important tasks.

Energy drinks pack in both caffeine and sugar. Many have 80 mg of caffeine (like one cup of coffee) plus tons of sugar. This double-hit drains your energy.

A huge study of over 53,000 college students found that even small amounts of energy drinks hurt sleep. The more energy drinks you drink, the less you sleep (17).

Daily energy drink users had double the risk of short sleep compared to non-users. This was true for both men and women.

Another study tracked 667 college students for up to 56 days. On days they drank energy drinks, they slept worse that night and felt more tired the next day (18).

High energy drink use links to mental health issues, anger, and weirdly, more fatigue. A study of 627 soldiers found that those drinking two or more energy drinks daily had way more mental health problems and felt more tired (19).

5. Fast Food and Fried Foods

Fast food is easy to grab. But it costs you energy.

Fast food packs way more calories per bite. Data from big fast food chains shows they have 65% more calories per serving than normal food. That’s more than double what health experts recommend (20).

This high calorie density messes with your hunger signals. You can eat too much without feeling full.

Fast food is also low in fiber and high in fat. This slows down digestion. A study of U.S. adults found that fast food eaters took in more calories, more fat, more sugar, and less fiber. They ate fewer fruits, veggies, and milk (21).

A similar study in kids found the same thing. Fast food led to 187 extra calories, more fat, more sugar, less fiber, and fewer fruits and veggies (22).

High-fat food makes you tired. People felt sleepier 2-3 hours after fatty meals compared to meals with less fat (23).

Another study confirmed that solid meals, especially fatty ones, made people way sleepier than just water (24).

Cut back on fast food and fried stuff. When you do eat it, add some veggies or fruit to balance things out.

6. Large, Heavy Meals

Big portions of heavy food make you sluggish. Your body needs to send energy to digest all that food.

Meals affect how tired you feel. The “food coma” is real.

One study found that fatty meals made people way more tired 3 hours after eating (23).

Your body releases inflammation signals after meals. These may make you tired. A study showed that blocking one of these signals cut down fatigue after meals. The effect was bigger in people with obesity (25).

Here’s what really causes food coma. It’s not blood leaving your brain. Your gut releases hormones and activates nerves that affect sleep centers in your brain (26).

A study on different meals found that high-fat, low-carb meals led to more tired feelings (27).

To skip the fatigue, eat smaller meals throughout your day instead of huge ones. Include protein, complex carbs, and veggies in each meal.

7. Very Low-Calorie Diets

Eating too little can drain your energy just like eating the wrong foods. Your body needs fuel to work.

Eating very few calories has big effects on your energy. Your metabolism slows down more than you’d expect just from losing weight (28).

Very low-calorie diets mess with your thyroid. Your thyroid controls energy in your body. A study of women on a 400-calorie daily diet found that thyroid hormone T3 dropped by 66%. Even after upping calories to 1000 per day, T3 stayed 22% below normal (29).

Another study found that a 15-day very low-calorie diet cut metabolism way down in women. They burned fewer calories overall and per pound of body weight (30).

Extreme dieting may also make you crave foods more. People on diets get way more food cravings than non-dieters (31).

The cravings were stronger and harder to resist. Dieters craved the exact foods they were avoiding.

A study of food cravings during weight loss found patterns. People who gave in to cravings less often lost more weight over 6 months (32).

Very strict diets can also hurt your mood and physical ability. A study mixing exercise with calorie cuts found that fitness got better. But you need enough food to maintain your energy (33).

Instead of crash diets, aim for moderate calorie cuts with nutrient-packed foods. This helps you lose weight while keeping your energy up.

How Can You Keep Your Energy Steady?

The key to steady energy is picking foods that give you lasting fuel without crashes. Stick to whole, unprocessed foods when you can.

Whole grains help stabilize energy. Whole grains have B vitamins your body uses to make energy. They also help keep your blood sugar stable all day (34).

Whole grains give you nutrients that most people lack. These include fiber, B vitamins, vitamin E, and minerals like selenium, zinc, and magnesium (35).

Poor nutrition strongly links to fatigue. Not eating well drains your body’s energy reserves, especially as you age (36).

A study of people with poor nutrition found clear links between nutrition and physical ability. Better nutrition meant better strength, mobility, and lower risk of falls (37).

The Bottom Line

The foods you eat have huge effects on your energy. Some foods give you lasting fuel. Others drain you and make you tired.

Refined carbs, alcohol, too much caffeine, energy drinks, fast food, large heavy meals, and crash diets all sap your energy. They work in different ways – messing up blood sugar, ruining sleep, slowing metabolism, and boosting inflammation.

Stick to whole, unprocessed foods for steady energy. Pick whole grains, lean proteins, fruits, veggies, and healthy fats. Eat regular, balanced meals and drink plenty of water. These simple changes help you keep steady energy all day and dodge the fatigue from energy-draining foods.