Khaberni - A new scientific review has shown that the success of the intermittent fasting regimen is not only dependent on the duration of the fasting period but is crucially linked to the timing of meal intake during the day.
Researchers from National Taiwan University, through a comprehensive analysis of global clinical trials, found that consuming meals during the daytime, especially finishing the last meal before 5 PM, leads to greater improvements in weight, insulin levels, and other health markers compared to adhering to the same regimen but eating at later hours.
Although time-restricted eating, where eating is confined within a particular time window each day, has proven effective in improving metabolic health compared to traditional diets, the study published in BMJ Medicine confirms that "early timing has a clear advantage over the later timing".
According to the results, finishing eating between 5 PM and 7 PM still proves better than the later window that starts after 9 AM and ends after 7 PM.
This superiority is attributed to the alignment of meal timing with the body's daily biological rhythms, where the body is more prepared to process food and burn fat during daylight hours. The less effective results were mainly associated with combining late eating and longer eating periods.
Dr. Ling-Wei Chen, one of the main researchers in the study, commented: "Time-restricted eating may be effective for many, but the timing of meals is a critical factor. Instead of focusing only on fasting duration, aligning meal intake with the body's biological clock might be key to achieving maximum metabolic benefit."
These findings suggest a new direction in dietary recommendations, where "when you eat" becomes as important as "what you eat" and "how much you eat" in promoting health and preventing metabolic diseases.
