The 'best' time of day to eat for 'significant' weight loss, according to new research
Scientists have pinpointed the optimal time of day to eat for the best weight loss results. According to new research, eating between these hours could lead to “significant” weight loss.
The results of this trial, which are set to be presented at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO) next month, showed that eating within an eight-hour window that starts earlier in the day was most effective for shedding pounds in the long term. Participants who stuck to this schedule lost 4.2kg in weight within a 12-week period.
This group ate within an eight-hour window that started before 10am. For the other 16 hours of the day they fasted, meaning they didn’t eat anything.
But, more importantly, this eating routine saw the most sustained weight loss over a year. After following the diet for three months, they were recorded to have a 2.2kg loss 12 months later.
Other participants within the trial were allowed to eat either within a 12-hour eating window, or an eight-hour window that started after 1pm. While both these groups also lost weight, they did not lose as much as those starting their eating window in the morning.
In comparison, those with the 12-hour window lost 1.4kg in 12 weeks while those who started eating after 1pm lost 3.1kg. Another group was also given the option to have their eight-hour eating window at any time they liked.
These participants saw weight loss results of 3.8kg in the first three-month trial period. Most notable was the fact that the people who ate within a 12-hour window saw their weight increase after 12 months by 0.4kg.
Those who ate within eight hours after 1pm had a 2kg weight loss after a year and those who ate within a chosen eight-hour window lost 0.7kg after 12 months. Based on these results, the study authors noted that any amount of fasting is beneficial.
Lead author Dr Alba Camacho-Cardenosa, from the Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria de Granada, in Spain commented: "Our study found that restricting the eating window to eight hours at any time of the day for three months can result in significant weight loss for at least a year.
"These benefits can be attributed to the 16-hour fasting window rather than the time of eating." The researchers not only recorded the weights of the 99 participants but their waist and hip circumference too.
The group that started eating before 10am experienced significantly greater reductions in waist and hip circumferences (average −4.1 cm and −4.6 cm, respectively). The late group also achieved a significant reduction in waist circumference (average −4.1 cm), but there was no significant reduction in hip circumference (average −3.2 cm).
Additionally, the 12-hour group had a lower waist circumference (−1.1 cm) and hip circumference (−1.4 cm) after 12 weeks of intervention. The self-selected eight-hour group also achieved reductions in waist and hip circumferences (average −3.7 cm and −3.6 cm respectively).
After a year the 12-hour group showed an increase in waist circumference of +1.8 cm at 12 months, and a slight increase of +0.03 cm in hip circumference. In comparison, both waist and hip circumferences remained significantly lower in the late group (average −5.6 cm and −3.4 cm respectively).
The early group and self-selected group also showed lower values in waist (average −0.5 cm and −1.3 cm respectively) and hip circumferences (average −1.0 cm and −1.8 cm respectively). Dr Jonatan R. Ruiz, study coordinator of the University of Granada, added: "This kind of intermittent fasting appears feasible for adults with overweight or obesity who wish to have a relatively simple way of losing and maintaining weight loss that is less tedious and more time-efficient compared with daily calorie counting, but it warrants further investigations in larger and longer-term studies.”
If you are concerned about your weight, you should speak to your GP.
Daily Express
