Dreams of the Rarebit Fiend: food and diet as instigators of bizarre and disturbing dreams

Frontiers in Psychology
Tore Nielsen, Russell A Powell

Abstract

In the early 1900s, the Dream of the Rarebit Fiend comic strip conveyed how the spicy cheese dish Welsh rarebit leads to bizarre and disturbing dreams. Today, the perception that foods disturb dreaming persists. But apart from case studies, some exploratory surveys, and a few lab studies on how hunger affects dreaming, there is little empirical evidence addressing this topic. The present study examines three aspects of the food/dreaming relationship; it attempts to: (1) assess the prevalence of the perception of food-dependent dreaming and the types of foods most commonly blamed; (2) determine if perceived food-dependent dreaming is associated with dietary, sleep or motivational factors; and (3) explore whether these factors, independent of food/dreaming perceptions, are associated with reports of vivid and disturbing dreams. Three hundred and ninety six students completed questionnaires evaluating sleep, dreams, and dietary habits and motivations. Items queried whether they had noticed if foods produced bizarre or disturbing dreams and if eating late at night influenced their dreams. The perception of food-dependent dreaming had a prevalence of 17.8%; with dairy products being the most frequently blamed food category (39-44%)....Continue Reading

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Citations

Jun 18, 2017·Frontiers in Neurology·Tore Nielsen
Dec 21, 2018·Frontiers in Neuroscience·Stefan Stieger, Tim Kuhlmann
Nov 29, 2020·Explore : the Journal of Science and Healing·Feifei Wang, Éva Bíró
Apr 1, 2021·The International Journal of Eating Disorders·Jake LinardonMatthew Fuller-Tyszkiewicz

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