Anahat Singh has a peculiar bedtime ritual. The squash player, who recently represented the country at the Asian Games and became the first Indian to win the Junior World Championships, spoke at length about her guilty pleasure on Raj Shamani’s podcast, The Figuring It Out Co. “I have this routine that before I go to sleep, I have to have six pieces of chocolate. I had this conversation with my mom yesterday; actually, we had an argument that, “Anahat, Asian Games is coming up; you really need to stop. And then I called my nutritionist right away and said, ‘Please talk to my mom; she’s not letting me have chocolates,’ she shared candidly.DISCLAIMER: This article is based on information from the public domain and/or the experts we spoke to. Always consult your health practitioner before starting any routine.Singh further added: “I’ve had chocolates for the last 18 years of my life. My nutritionist says, ‘Okay, can we bring it down to five pieces, four pieces. I was like, ‘No, I’m sticking to my six pieces and you can change anything else about my day, but this doesn’t change’.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Figuring Out with Raj Shamani (@figuringout.co)Can this habit have downsides?Edwina Raj, Head of Services – Clinical Nutrition & Dietetics, Aster CMI Hospital, Bangalore, says having a small amount of chocolate before bed is not necessarily harmful for a healthy, active person. “And for an athlete such as Anahat Singh, a few pieces may provide carbohydrates and calories that can contribute to overall energy intake,” she mentions.“Dark chocolate contains cocoa compounds such as flavanols and minerals such as magnesium, but the benefits depend greatly on the type and quantity of chocolate,” Raj tells indianexpress.com. To add to that, she says that there is no evidence that eating six pieces every night is a special requirement for better sleep, recovery or athletic performance.“Chocolate can contain sugar, fat and caffeine, with the caffeine content varying according to the type and cocoa percentage, so a small portion of dark chocolate may be quite different nutritionally from six pieces of a highly sweetened milk or filled chocolate,” says the nutritionist.She also highlights that individual response also matters because some people can eat chocolate at night without problems while others may experience difficulty falling asleep, heartburn or digestive discomfort.However, Raj points out that the main concern with eating chocolate immediately before sleep every night is that the “caffeine and other stimulants naturally present in cocoa can interfere with sleep in sensitive people”.Story continues below this adAlternatives to try“If someone enjoys chocolate before bed and it does not affect their sleep, weight, digestion or overall diet, a small portion can generally fit into a balanced eating pattern, but it is better to choose a modest portion of good-quality dark chocolate with a higher cocoa content,” she advises.But it should not be looked at as a replacement for a nutritious evening meal or recovery snack. In such cases, consider alternatives such as “yoghurt with fruit, milk with a banana, nuts and fruit”, or another carbohydrate-and-protein combination when the goal is exercise recovery.ALSO READ | Is increased cocoa content in chocolates beneficial for health?Most importantly, Raj says that athletes should prioritise adequate total calories, protein, carbohydrates, hydration and sleep rather than copying another athlete’s routine.“Anyone who notices poor sleep, morning tiredness, acidity or unwanted weight gain after regularly eating chocolate at night should reduce the amount or move it earlier in the day, because the ideal bedtime snack is individual rather than one-size-fits-all,” she concludes.Story continues below this adDISCLAIMER: This article is based on information from the public domain and/or the experts we spoke to. Always consult your health practitioner before starting any routine.