According to research published in the Journal of Heart Association and as reported by Science Daily, a six-year-old study discovered no link between the time of day between meals and weight reduction.
A study of over 550 adults tracked for six years found that eating less overall and fewer large meals may be more beneficial for weight control than restricting meals to a specific time window, such as intermittent fasting.
Throughout the six-year research, no link between the duration between meals and weight gain or loss could be identified. Despite widespread interest in “time-restricted eating patterns,” also known as “intermittent fasting,” Wendy L. Bennett, M.D., M.P.H., associate professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore and senior study author, says that high-quality scientific studies have yet to establish whether they help with weight control. Â
This study employed statistical methods to assess if there is a link between the amount of time between meals and weight gain or loss. The study included over 550 participants (18+) from three health systems in Maryland and Pennsylvania who provided electronic health data. Both participants’ weight and height were measured and reported at various points throughout the past two years. Â
Adults with a higher B.M.I. were more likely to be older, have Type 2 diabetes or high blood pressure, have a lower education level, participate in less physical activity, consume fewer fruits and vegetables, eat supper earlier, and go longer between meals than those with a lower B.M.I. Â
The researchers developed a smartphone app called Daily24 that allowed users to track their eating, sleeping, and waking patterns in real-time throughout multiple 24-hour periods.
Participants in the intervention group were encouraged to use the app often during the first month by email, text message, and in-app alerts, and then once a month during “power weeks” for the remainder of the research. Â
Researchers were able to examine the following characteristics based on people’s daily app-recorded sleep and meal timings: Mealtimes (breakfast, lunch, dinner, and breakfast the next day), bedtimes (how long it takes to eat supper and fall asleep), and total daily time spent eating and drinking are all factors to consider. They derived an average for each participant based on all completed days. Â
Throughout the six-year study, there was no correlation between meal timing and weight growth. Time spent transitioning from no food consumed all day to eating something is included, as is time spent before falling asleep after the evening meal.
More big meals (over 1,000 calories) and medium meals (500-1,000 calories) per day were related to weight gain, but fewer small meals (less than 500 calories) per day were associated with weight loss across six years. Â
On average, a person slept for 7.5 hours each night, ate supper 11.5 hours after getting up, and watched T.V. for 4 hours before retiring for the night. The study’s findings revealed no link between shifting calorie consumption throughout the day and variations in BMI.
Bennett, on the other hand, claims that this study, which included a broad population with a wide variety of body weights, was unable to find a link between intermittent fasting and enhanced circadian rhythms or metabolic control.
Despite the difficulties of performing large-scale, rigorous clinical trials on the advantages of intermittent fasting on long-term weight loss, short-term intervention studies may be helpful in directing future recommendations.
