Science has proven once again that the best weight loss tips are simple ideas that last. Fasting longer at night and eating breakfast earlier fall into this category.
It was on the sidelines of a study recently in International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity that researchers from Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal), in Spain, analyzed data on the diet and weight of 7,074 individuals aged between 40 and 65 years.
They concluded that have an early breakfast and an early dinner, without eating between the two mealswas associated with lower body mass index (BMI) values after five years.
While BMI is a problematic measure of obesity, the results add to a growing body of studies looking at how the times we eat can affect our health.
In this case, details the , researchers believe that the results could be linked to the body’s circadian rhythms – the internal biological clocks that we all have, which work on a 24-hour cycle and give the body signals about when to rest and when to wake up.
“Our results, in line with other recent studies, suggest that prolonging the overnight fasting can help maintain a healthy weight if accompanied by a early dinner and an early breakfast”, highlighted the epidemiologist Luciana Pons-Muzzofrom ISGlobal, to the above-mentioned magazine.
“We think this may be due to the fact that eating earlier in the day is more aligned with circadian rhythms and allows for better calorie burning and appetite regulation, which may help maintain a healthy weight,” he added.
The researchers turned to several statistical methods, adjusting for variables such as age and sleep, and concluded that eating breakfast later and eating more frequently were associated with a higher BMI, while a longer overnight fast was associated with a lower BMI.
It is important to highlight that the study is not structured to prove a direct cause and effect relationship, but there are some significant associations.
That is, if you are currently skipping breakfast in an attempt to reduce calories, you may want to move up dinner time and eat breakfast instead.
O sleep may also play an important role. We know that getting enough sleep is crucial for our health, and the eating patterns highlighted here may be the most favorable to this.
