Late Mealtimes Encourage Weight Gain
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https://www.jwatch.org/na55457/2022/10/25/late-mealtimes-encourage-weight-gain?ijkey=Qen-uBr_v
Late Mealtimes Encourage Weight Gain
Anthony L. Komaroff, MD, reviewing Vujović N et al. Cell Metab 2022 Oct 4
Changes in circadian and obesity-related gene expression were responsible.
During the past decade, several studies have shown an association between late mealtimes and obesity. In a new study from Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, researchers examined possible mechanisms behind this phenomenon.
Sixteen overweight or obese young adults agreed to have their meals and physical activity controlled by the study protocol for several months. During the “early-meal” study period, participants ate meals at about 9 a.m., 1 p.m., and 5 p.m., whereas in the “late-meal” period, they ate at about 1 p.m., 5 p.m., and 9 p.m.. Importantly, the total amount of calories and physical activity during the two study periods was identical: Only the mealtimes were different.
Late eating had the following effects: It decreased levels of the appetite-reducing hormone, leptin, and greatly increased hunger; it increased storage of fatty acids and decreased burning of fatty acids in adipocytes; and it decreased waketime energy expenditure. Changes in the expression of genes involved in cellular circadian rhythms and genes known to control the storage and burning of fatty acids clearly were responsible.
For years I've been saying that weight gain is not a simple measurement of calories consumed. It's far, far more complicated than that. It's not how much you eat, it's how much of that you keep.
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Years ago, they did a study where the vast amount of daily calories were fed at one meal. One group received their big meal at breakfast, another at lunch and another group received the bulk of their calories at dinner.
Results...Breakfast group lost weight, lunch group stayed about the same and the dinner group gained weight.
