Timing meals may improve heart health

Limiting the times you eat may improve heart health. Photo: Thinkstock

It’s no secret that eating the right food is essential in boosting your heart health.

But new research has found that timing when you eat may be just as important.

A study published in the journal Science looked at the effect that limiting times of eating had on age and diet-related heart problems. Conducting the study on fruit flies – often used as model organisms when examining human disease – researchers found that limiting the times they could eat may prevented heart-related problems.

Researchers found that the genes responsible for the body’s circadian rhythm played a role in this process, but are unable to explain why. Previous research has examined how people who eat later in the day (such as shift workers) are at higher risk of developing heart disease, and also how eating at different times of day may have an effect on appetite.

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During this study one group of fruit flies was given a diet of cornmeal they could eat all day, while another group was restricted to feeding for only 12 hours of the day. Researchers recorded markers related to sleep, body weight and heart physiology.

At the end of the three-week study, the results showed that those on the 12-hour time-restricted schedule slept better didn’t gain as much weight and had significantly healthier hearts, even though the same amount of food was eaten.

“These results reinforce the idea that the daily eating pattern has a profound impact on both the body and the brain,” said study senior author Satchidananda Panda from San Diego State University in the US.

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While the outcomes are promising for humans, the authors concede there are limitations. “Humans don’t consume the same food every day,” says co-author Shubhroz Gill. “Our lifestyle is a major determinant of when we can and cannot eat. But at the very minimum, our studies offer some context in which we should be pursuing in humans.”

Bottom line: feeding time plays an important role in your health, and may lower your risk of other lifestyle illnesses such as obesity, metabolic syndrome and type-2 diabetes. If it all it takes to improve your health is limiting your meal times and ditching the late night snacks, it’s worth a try. But it's also important to choose the right kinds of foods, such as healthy fats, lean protein and lots of fresh vegetables. Your heart will thank you for it.

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