Eating after 8pm could make you gain weight: Study

Monitoring Desk

SYDNEY: We’ve all had days where busy mornings build into even busier afternoons which result in a late commute home and an internal struggle in front of the open fridge at 9pm at night as to whether eating a full dinner right before going to bed is really a good idea or not.

Studies have shown that the best time to eat dinner is usually earlier in the evening in terms of weight management, digestion and keeping in time with the human body’s 24-hour, circadian rhythm.

New research has added more weight to the argument for eating earlier in the evening if possible, with scientists at the University of Colorado in Denver recently conducting an experiment that showed people who eat later in the day tend to have a higher BMI and greater levels of body fat.

31 adults with an average age of 36 took part in the study. To capture as much relevant information as possible, the scientists assessed the participants’ sleep, levels of activity, and diet.

“We used a novel set of methods to show that individuals with overweight and obesity may be eating later into the day,” said lead author of the investigation, Dr. Adnin Zaman.

The findings of this latest study support a 2011 study by Northwestern University, Chicago, which concluded that “caloric intake after 8:00 p.m. may increase the risk of obesity.”

Scientists from at the University of Colorado in Denver now intend to extend the study to monitor whether eating dinner earlier in the day consistently would result in a lower risk of obesity in individuals.

Courtesy: (bodyandsoul.com.au)