7 Bizarre Bits of Insomnia Advice From History

Insomnia is no fun, as anyone who has found themselves staring at the ceiling as dawn’s rays start to creep in can attest. Of course, some people have always struggled to sleep more than others.

Modern insomnia advice generally includes waking up and falling asleep at the same time every day, turning off electronics an hour before bed, using your bed only for sleep, and similar strategies that will be entirely unsurprising to anyone who’s ever done a bit of research into the subject.

Naturally, there’s also a plethora of more unusual, less-verified sleep advice out there today, from biohacking to convincing yourself you actually need to stay awake, a reverse psychology-based tactic called paradoxical intention. Yet even the most seasoned sleep experts may not be aware of some of the truly bizarre things people in the past tried to ensure some solid shut-eye.

1. Put a cold apple on the head
2. Rub dormouse fat on the feet
3. Drink poison
4. Take “lettuce opium”
5. Put cow dung at the foot of the bed
6. Leave a bowl of sliced onions beside your bed
7. Tie vinegar-soaked bread to the feet

Put a cold apple on the head

Britain’s Tudor era—which lasted from 1485 to 1603—may be best known for some of the stunning bursts of violence committed by the ruling family of the time, namely the execution of Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard at the hands of Henry VIII. 

Yet you may not know that many people of this era took sleep extremely seriously, viewing it as one of the most important facets of well-being. Some of their strategies aren’t so different from modern sleep techniques; people would scent rooms with flowers and herbs and would avoid heavy foods right before bed, and sleep experts generally stand by these two practices today. 

One particularly innovative Tudor sleep strategy, however, hasn’t exactly held up, and that’s the tradition of putting a cold apple on your head. At the time, apples were believed to have sleep-inducing properties. While placing an icy piece of fruit on your skull may not appeal to even the most desperate of sleep-deprived folks today, this practice may be rooted in some real wisdom.

Sleep experts say sleeping in a cooler room is much more likely to foster better rest, as cooler temperatures can facilitate melatonin production and can encourage the body to naturally drop to the cooler temperatures it reaches during sleep. 

Rub dormouse fat on the feet

Mice are probably not what most people want to think about while trying to settle down for a good night’s sleep. But one folk remedy that dates back to Elizabethan England and possibly earlier involves dousing one’s feet in dormouse fat in order to secure a solid night of rest. This practice may be rooted in the very real fact that dormice themselves are excellent sleepers—research has shown that these little creatures can hibernate for over 11 months without stopping.

Drink poison

A wide variety of substances that we now know to be extremely poisonous and dangerous used to be run-of-the-mill sleep medications of yore. In ancient Greece, doctors would sometimes prescribe everything from henbane and deadly nightshade to opium poppies for insomnia. Additionally, a popular 19th-century tonic called Mrs. Winslow’s Soothing Syrup contained full-on morphine, and was often given to infants and small children, frequently with tragic results. Meanwhile, methaqualone—better known by the name Quaaludes—was patented in the U.S. as an insomnia treatment in 1962. 

Take “lettuce opium”

Certain types of lettuce plants secrete a substance called lactucarium, which has mild sedative qualities. These effects were prized by ancient Egyptians, who often used so-called “lettuce opium” as an insomnia cure. Later, people in Victorian England frequently cited “lettuce soup” as a treatment for restlessness.

Put cow dung at the foot of the bed

This one might top the list of old sleep cures that probably actually kept people up. People in the 18th century and earlier sometimes resorted to desperate measures in order to keep flies and bugs at bay during the night, and one such measure was the practice of putting cow dung at the foot of the bed—at least according to Hannah Glasse, who suggested this tactic in her 1760 book The House-Keeper’s Companion. Specifically, she claimed that this approach would help anyone living in a marshy area to keep bugs at bay.

Leave a bowl of sliced onions beside your bed

Among the pantheon of supposedly sleep-inducing herbs, onions may not be the first ones you think of, but according to some folk beliefs, these pungent veggies might be able to help induce a great night’s rest. This tactic might not make anyone you’re sleeping next to particularly happy, but actually, some people still swear by it today. 

Onions have also been said to clear bad energy and reduce colds, and while the science behind all this is limited, we do know that onions contain small amounts of L-tryptophan, which is believed to be a natural sedative. Additionally, some evidence has suggested that onions contain a compound called cysteine sulfoxide, which may help with insomnia. 

However, experts say onions do not release enough of either of these to truly help with sleep. But as anyone who’s swallowed lemon balm, ashwagandha, and valerian pills while downing chamomile tea in a desperate effort to slip into dreamland knows, sometimes almost anything is worth a try when it comes to sleep, which may be why the so-called onion method has gained traction online. 

Tie vinegar-soaked bread to the feet

In 1637, the physician Tobias Venner shared a number of suggestions for people looking to sleep better. Some were more conventional, such as drinking almond milk blended with barley, flowers, and sugar. Yet one particularly strange tactic he suggested was tying bread doused in vinegar to one’s feet. This one doesn't seem to have lasted particularly long, possibly because it’s not so hard to imagine how often this practice would necessitate doing quite a bit of laundry—which was, obviously, much more of a chore back then than it is today.

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