The time of day you eat (early or late in the day, over many hours) can have a significant impact on your metabolism, cardiovascular health and the number of calories stored as fat, two new studies show. became clear in
A study published in Cell Metabolism suggests that eating later in the day may slow metabolism and promote fat storage, but keep food intake within a 10-hour window. may improve blood pressure and cholesterol in people at risk for heart disease. cause.
In one study, researchers closely monitored 16 overweight or obese volunteers in a laboratory setting, eating three meals early at 9:00 a.m., 1:00 p.m., and 6:20 p.m. For 4 days, 3 meals were shifted 4 hours later. 1:00 pm, 5:00 pm, and 10:20 pm Early and late meals consumed the same amount of calories.
Half of the volunteers were randomly assigned to the early diet and the other half to the late diet.
Each day volunteers were in the lab, they recorded their levels of hunger and food cravings. Environmental factors such as lighting, room temperature, and humidity were tightly controlled by researchers.
Meanwhile, the researchers collected hourly data on hunger hormones, body temperature, and energy expenditure. They also collected information about whether the volunteers’ bodies were leaning toward storing the calories they burned as fat.
The data suggested that, compared to fast eating, late meal intake increased hunger, increased levels of the hunger hormone ghrelin, and decreased levels of the satiety hormone leptin. In addition, eating later left people with lower body temperatures and slower metabolisms, burning fewer calories. There were also indications that late eating may increase fat accumulation.
New findings suggest that eating late “promotes weight gain,” said study co-author and director of the Medical Chronobiology Program at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard University. Dr. Frank Scheer, a professor of medicine at the School of Medicine, said.
“We have one of the most controlled and comprehensive studies looking at this,” Scheer said. “So we were able to isolate the effects of meal timing.”
Basically, by eating late, you’re fighting your internal clock, says Scheer.
Another study evaluated the effects of a 12-week meal-time program (i.e., people were only allowed to eat at set times of the day) in San Diego firefighters working 24-hour shifts137. I surveyed people.
All 137 were asked to maintain a Mediterranean diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains and healthy fats, while 70 restricted their food consumption to a 10-hour time frame. I was asked to
Firefighters agreed to wear devices that track activity, sleep, and blood sugar levels, and to record the time they ate and slept. Everyone in the timed eating group was able to choose the timing of their food intake window.Most people start eating between 8:00 and 9:00 am and finish between 6:00 and 7:00 pm.
Time-sensitive meal plans often have a shorter time frame than 10 hours, but the researchers used the 10-hour time frame because “it’s easier to do than 8 hours. Especially since it was my first time observing a firefighter,” said study co-author Dr. Pam Taub, director of the Step Family Foundation Cardiovascular Rehabilitation and Wellness Center and professor of medicine at the University of California, San Diego, said:
Overall, the two groups were fairly similar, except that LDL (bad cholesterol) particle size was larger in those not engaged in a time-restricted diet. No, but there is some evidence that larger sizes may be associated with heart disease.
The greatest differences were initially seen in firefighters who had cardiovascular disease risk factors such as high blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess body fat around the waist, and abnormal cholesterol levels. , the time-limited regimen improved blood pressure and blood glucose levels.
“The bigger concept is that you don’t have to be eating all the time.” So the restricted meal schedule gave the firefighters’ metabolism “14 hours of metabolic rest,” Taub added.
During this rest period, your cells recharge and reorganize, says Taub. “It’s a sort of cellular cleansing and repair process,” she explained.
The two new studies follow another study published online in September. The study looked at her maximum meal timings of the day for people on a diet designed to help them lose weight. The study found no difference whether it was breakfast, lunch or dinner.
While this may seem a bit contradictory to other papers, similar to laboratory studies, some people who eat large meals at the end of the day experience hunger early on. I know someone who was. In the end, both groups caused him to lose about the same amount of weight in 12 weeks.
The biggest message people should get from these studies is that eating your last meal close to bedtime is not a good idea.Center, New York. “This means that you should finish eating earlier in the day rather than later in the day,” she added.
St-Onge said: In other words, slow eaters burn less fat, and in the long run, these slow eaters tend to accumulate more body fat than muscle.
Ultimately, it’s still best to customize your meal plan and listen to your body, says Megan Jenkins, M.D., weight loss surgery specialist at NYU Langone Health in New York City.
So for many people, eating breakfast early in the morning can help curb their appetite in the morning, but some people don’t get hungry until later, Jenkins said, adding she was one of them. . If she eats early when she isn’t hungry, she may be even more hungry later on, she added.
Still, if you get your first meal closer to a typical lunchtime, Jenkins says you shouldn’t shift your entire meal schedule later. I think most of them are,” she added.
