It is well known that the quality and type of foods we eat have a concrete impact on our health. But sometimes we forget the consequences of our habits. For example, a coffee after dinner could lead us to insomnia.
Focusing on the dinner routine, a recurring question is: do you have dinner late? There are several scientific studies and research on how this impacts on our health.
What does dining late mean?
It is not uncommon to get home late in the evening due to work overtime, traffic and transportation delays. In addition, there are many places in which people traditionally eat late especially during the summer.
However, to understand if eating late can be bad for your health, we must define what "late" means. There's no universal definition, but some studies suggest that the last meal of the day should be concluded at least 2 hours before going to sleep, others say that it must be placed no later than 6 pm.
In any case, the aim is to allow the body to digest and assimilate the nutrients before the sleeping phase, when the body could lack the energies necessary for digestion.
Is the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease increased?
People who eat late probably have higher insulin, "bad" cholesterol, fasting glucose and triglycerides levels than other people similar from a physical point of view, but who eat earlier. The most important thing, from the health point of view, is that these factors not only involve a difficulty in maintaining physical fitness, but increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases and diabetes.
Image source.
Does dine late make you fat?
A team of researchers from the University of Pennsylvania's Perelman School of Medicine has published a study which highlights a direct correlation between a late dinner and the increase of weight.
The study involved nine healthy adults whose metabolic values were measured and blood tests performed before and after the experiment. During the entire period, different meal times were imposed for consecutive periods: for 8 weeks they followed an early diet, for 2 weeks they restored their normal habits, and for 8 weeks they had a postponed regimen. Despite the variations in the breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks, the hours of sleep were kept constant, from 11 pm to 8 am.
The comparison of the data collected at the beginning, during and at the end of the experiment allowed the researchers to observe that a postponed diet corresponds to an increase in weight and a greater ratio between the carbon dioxide produced by the body and the oxygen consumed. This element, defined as "respiratory quotient", indicates what type of macronutrient has been metabolized and, consequently, suggests that eating late leads to the metabolization of less fat and carbohydrates that are thus accumulated.
Image source.
Problems also for the memory
The relationship between meal times and health affects also the memory according to University of California (UCLA). Their study reveals that late dinner or "midnight snacks" have bad effects on our brains.
The research was carried out on guinea pigs and showed that mice fed during periods in which they would have to sleep are less able to remember new things. In addition, varying the meal times of the mice, derives a misalignment of the circadian rhythms.
Tips for an healthful dinner
So what are the good habits that help us keep ourselves healthy? First of all, it is good to choose balanced and light meals, in order to help digestive processes. It is preferable to eat a light fish or meat dish with some side vegetables and a portion of bread, rice or cereals. If you eat earlier, you can also add some pasta with a light sauce. Regarding the dinner time, a good habit can be to finish the dinner at least three hours before going to sleep. Finally, the first step to keep us healthy is beginning the day with and healthy breakfast!
Did you like the post? Please upvote, comment and follow!