This eating habit is key to losing weight
New research has found the time of day you eat is key to losing weight.
The findings reveal that your best efforts to cut back may prove ineffective if you’re not timing your meals correctly.
A study found that mice lost weight when they were given a reduced calorie diet and only ate during the day.
Rodents who consumed the same diet but ate at night did not reap the same results.
Lead author of the study, Dr Joseph Takahashi, said, “Translated into human behaviour, these studies suggest that dieting will only be effective if calories are consumed during the daytime when we are awake and active.”
Dr Takahashi added, “They further suggest that eating at the wrong time at night will not lead to weight loss even when dieting.”
Scientists from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center also believe the timing of meals is important as it also affects circadian rhythms, the body’s 24-hour clock.
They have highlighted how the research may explain how dietary habits impact lifespan.
The study observed this by testing the day/night cycles of mice under different feeding schedules.
Two groups of mice were fed at the wrong time during their normal cycle. One group was given 30 per cent less calories and the other group had unlimited food, but both groups were more active at night.
Various research has associated sleep problems with an increased risk of obesity.
“'It has been known for decades that calorie restriction prolongs lifespan in animals, but these types of studies are very difficult to conduct because they required manual feeding of subjects over many years," Dr Takahashi said
“This automated system, which can be scaled up for large and very long longevity studies, provides the means to address open questions about what mechanisms extend lifespan in mammals.”
Image credit: Shutterstock
The research was published in the journal Cell Metabolism.