The risks of cancer would be related to the meal time

A new study, conducted at the Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) in Barcelona and published in the International Journal of Cancer. a center supported by the Caixa Banking Foundation, monitored 621 prostate cancer patients and 1,205 women with bad cancer, as well as 872 men and 1,321 female controls, to see if evening meal times were badociated at an increased risk of developing both cancers. The researchers interviewed the participants for their meal times, bedtime and chronotype, the natural inclination to morning or night activities. Participants were also asked to complete a questionnaire about their eating habits and adherence to cancer prevention guidelines.

Results showed participants who waited at least two hours after dinner before going to bed. had a 20% lower risk of bad or prostate cancer compared to those who would immediately go to bed after the meal.

Cancer Risks Related to Meal Time

Meals before meals 21h would also have the same protective effect compared to people who dine after 22h. The positive effect of waiting longer before going to bed was more pronounced in participants who adhered to cancer prevention recommendations and in people who were older in the morning. This study is the first to badyze the badociation between cancer risk and meal and bedtime schedules, with previous studies focusing on dietary habits, such as the effects of eating red meat or fruits and vegetables instead. only on meal times.

"Our study concludes that adherence to diurnal meal models is badociated with a lower risk of cancer," commented lead author Manolis Kogevinas, adding that the results "underline the importance of evaluating circadian rhythms in studies of diet and cancer."

Dinner sooner or later?

Dora Romaguera, the other author of the study also noted that "further research on humans was needed to understand the causes of these findings, but there is every indication that sleep schedules affect our ability to metabolize food." Experiments with animals have shown that time of food consumption has "profound consequences on food metabolism and health."

If these conclusions are confirmed, Professor Kogevinas made it clear that "they will have implications for cancer prevention recommendations, which currently do not take into account meal times. " And to conclude that the impact could be all the more important in the cultures of southern Europe, where we tend to dine late. "