Mind The Clock! 'When You Eat' Is Crucial For Weight Loss

Are you someone trying to lose weight? You should know 'when you eat' is as important as 'what you eat'. Here are the reasons why meal timing is important for weight loss.

Timing is everything even when it comes to weight loss. Aligning your meals with your body's circadian rhythm (sleep-wake cycle) may just help your body perform its functions properly and contribute to a healthy weight. However, our work schedules and family obligations make it difficult to follow proper meal timing and cut off the junk in your life. While it is not easy to fit in a new routine in your fast-paced life, it is important as a hectic life combined with disrupted meal timing is a recipe for disaster. It could lead to poorer health and unnecessary weight gain. So, if weight loss is your goal, you might want to stick to proper meal timing. Here is why!

Is Meal Timing Important For Weight Loss?

A study published in the journal Obesity found that people who eat a big breakfast experienced more than twice the amount of weight loss as compared to those who ate a big dinner. The group that ate a bigger breakfast, but a small dinner showed improvements in triglyceride and cholesterol levels. As per the study results, they also showed a significantly lower risk of health problems such as diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and heart diseases.

Priyanka Agarwal, Clinical Nutritionist, Department of Dietetics & Nutrition, Max Super Specialty Hospital, Vaishali and Max Multi Specialty Centre, Noida, explains that meal timing is an important aspect of losing weight. "It can be difficult for some people to eat every two hours as recommended. However, if you cannot follow that timing, it is crucial that you eat your major meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner at a particular time and include a snack in between the two main meal timing."

Ms Agarwal says that "one should consume a heavy breakfast, but light dinner. The last meal of the day should be consumed at least two-three hours before bed. A particular mealtime is essential because the next day cycle depends on the previous day cycle. Research has proven that following body's clock is important."

She further elaborates that your body burns calories when it is at rest, which is known as basal metabolic rate (BMR). Since your body burns calories at night, it requires more energy when you wake up the reason why you should eat a heavy breakfast. Also, good filling breakfast will help boost your metabolism and help the body to function at its best, which helps in weight loss as well. So, if a person skips breakfast or eats it late, then they eat a late lunch or skip it, and they end up consuming a heavy dinner. The whole meal timing is disrupted, which can affect your body's cycle as well.

Meal Timing In Sync With Hormones Is Good For Weight Loss

Ms Agarwal highlights that "insulin is the primary signal that helps communicate the timing of meals to the cellular clock of the body." Insulin is the hormone produced in the pancreas, which regulated the amount of glucose in the blood. Insulin works to reduce blood sugar levels by moving glucose out of the body and into the neighbouring cells, where it is either used as a fuel or stored as body fat. According to a study published in the Indian Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Insulin produced endogenously can suppress ghrelin, the hunger hormone and leads to suppression of appetite and weight loss.

Also, weight loss is a brain and hormone game. Ghrelin (hunger hormone) and leptin (satiety hormone) signal the brain that you are hungry, or you need food, or you are not satisfied. Following proper meal timing can keep these hormones in control to help you lose weight effectively.

Does Time-Restricted Diets Work For Weight Loss?

Intermittent fasting is an eating pattern where you cycle between periods of eating and fasting. It is about when you eat your food, rather than which foods you should eat. Growing research on intermittent fasting shows promising results, and the diet has become more prominent among many fitness enthusiasts. But is it healthy to follow an intermittent diet to lose weight?

Highlighting the benefits and drawbacks of the diet, the expert says that while it is fine for a healthy person who wants to lose weight to follow this diet, it is not a good idea for someone with an underlying disease.

"People suffering from chronic liver disease or diabetes is not recommended intermittent fasting. Diabetics on insulin should never go on intermittent fasting as the diet could lead to hypoglycemia a condition in which your blood sugar levels go below the normal blood sugar levels," she points out. However, she says that intermittent fasting can have a positive result in those trying to lose weight and do not suffer from an illness. Nonetheless, you need to consult a professional dietician or nutritionist before going for this diet, as it can lead to acidity and bloating, especially in people with high acidic levels in their body.

Again, timing plays an important role when it comes to problems such as bloating. Not following proper meal timing can contribute to the onset of such health problems.

How To Time Your Meals?

If you are planning to pay attention to meal timing while trying to lose weight, these tips by Ms Priyanka Agarwal can come in handy:

• Stick to a shorter window if you are on an intermittent diet. It will also help avoid avidity. Five meal timing works for most people, but it may differ for some.
• Small and frequent meals are key to maintain meal timing when trying to lose weight.
• Make sure you eat a heavy breakfast and keep your dinner light and lean to avoid unnecessary weight gain.
• Eat a wholesome, balanced breakfast that provides your body with sufficient protein, healthy carbs, and other important nutrients. It will also keep your blood sugar and hunger hormones in check.
• Make sure there is a gap of at least 2-3 hours between your last meal of the day and sleep.

Note: While the tips mentioned in the article is by a professional dietician, make sure you check for health problems and then start following a particular diet.