Skipping snacks before bed can improve weight loss. According to new research, eating breakfast and avoiding your bedtime snack will help in burning fat and losing weight.
Almost 50% of the U.S. adults are trying to lose weight while others are following daily intermittent fasting to shed their pounds. This type of diet involves daily fasting for 14–16 hours and restricting your daily eating window to 8–10 hours.
Intermittent fasting has become very popular, in fact, a 2018 survey shows that 1,009 adults in the U.S. follow the diet.
Researchers from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN, note that the meal timings can affect weight gain. The findings now appear in the journal PLOS Biology.
During the study, the researchers analyzed the metabolism of six people by following their meal timings.
The participants, aged 50 years or above, were at risk of metabolic disorders. Each day they consumed three meals over two separate 56-hour sessions.
In the first session, the participants ate breakfast, lunch, and dinner. In the second session, they didn’t eat breakfast but took a late evening snack.
The scientists monitored the participants’ metabolism as well as the breakdown of carbohydrates and fats. The overall study found that eating late-night snacks delayed fat burning.
“There are a lot of studies on both animals and humans that suggest it’s not only about how much you eat but rather when you eat,” explains, senior author of the study Prof. Carl Johnson who is a Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor of Biological Sciences.
Helene Elliott is the senior reporter for News Raise. She covers Science news. She also has a keen interest in photojournalism. Helene holds a nomination for the prestigious Red Smith Award. She is married to author Dennis D’Agostino, a former publicist with the New York Mets.
