A new study has delved into the link between metabolism, circadian rhythms and meal times, revealing that eating outside of our body’s natural rhythms can disrupt key metabolic processes like insulin secretion and glucose processing. This can lead to weight gain.
The research, conducted by scientists at Ewha Womans University in Seoul, South Korea, and published in Physiology and Behavior, explored the field of chrononutrition, which investigates how meal times impact our health beyond just what or how much we eat. The study found that late-night eating, particularly after 9pm, can have serious implications for metabolic health and significantly increase obesity risk.
The research also suggests that consuming more calories during breakfast promotes weight loss compared to doing so at dinner. The study analysed data from 9,474 Korean adults, with an average age of 54, providing a comprehensive look at how meal timings, sleep duration, and body weight interact.
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The study also considered specific hormonal factors such as menopausal status in women. It discovered that eating high-calorie foods like burgers late at night can disrupt our biological clock and increase the risk of obesity.
Over three and a half years of follow-up, researchers found that those who ate after 9pm were 20% more likely to develop obesity. This risk was even higher in men, where a 34% increase was observed compared to other groups, reports the Mirror.
Late-night munching can lead to insulin resistance, chronic inflammation, and elevated LDL cholesterol levels, also known as “bad cholesterol.”, according to infobae.com. For women, despite a lower overall percentage, there was a noticeable trend of abdominal fat accumulation which is a key sign of metabolic and cardiovascular risk.
During the night, the body’s biological clock, which controls essential hormonal processes, is not primed for digestion and metabolism of food, particularly calorie-dense ones. It’s clear that consuming meat at night can impede digestion and contribute to weight gain if eaten outside optimal metabolic rhythms.
It also impacts hormone secretion like insulin, vital for glucose processing, resulting in reduced carbohydrate tolerance compared to daytime hours. This point is backed up by numerous studies including the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, which noted insulin sensitivity is higher during the day, allowing for better carbohydrate processing.
Further research notes daytime meal schedules enhances carbohydrate tolerance and insulin sensitivity. Concerning sleep and eating, previous studies suggest at least eight hours are needed after dinner and are associated with a lower risk of obesity due to improved regulation of appetite-related hormones like ghrelin and leptin.
Researchers have shed light on why late-night snacking might lead to an increase in belly fat, especially among women, suggesting that it’s down to hormonal imbalances caused by eating when the body expects to be resting. They point out that “modern social factors such as prolonged workdays, night shift work, and widespread use of electronic devices have facilitated sleep deprivation and nighttime eating, thus exacerbating circadian misalignment and its associated health risks” which include chronic inflammation and a heightened risk of autoimmune diseases.