Weight: Lose Weight Smartly: Time Your Meals, Coordinate with the Biological Clock

WASHINGTON DC. [USA]If you are looking to lose a few pounds, planning your meals could help you lose weight. According to one study, meal planning strategies such as intermittent fasting or eating earlier in the day seem to help people lose weight by reducing their appetite rather than burning more calories.

The study published in the journal "Obesity" showed how the choice of meals affects the energy metabolism over 24 hours when the food consumption and the frequency of the meals are identical.

"Coordinating meals with circadian rhythms, or the internal clock of your body, may be a powerful strategy for reducing appetite and improving metabolic health," said Eric Ravussin, the author of the report. one of the authors of the study.

"We suspect that a majority of people find meal-making strategies that help them lose weight or maintain weight because they seem to have a natural appetite, which can help people eat less," he said. said Courtney M. Peterson, lead author of the study.

Peterson and his colleagues also reported that meal planning strategies can help people burn more fat on average over a 24-hour period.

Early Restricted Feeding (eTRF) – a form of intermittent fasting daily where dinner is taken in the afternoons – has helped improve people's ability to switch from carbohydrate intake to burning of food. Energy to the burning of fats with the burning of energy, an aspect of metabolism called metabolism flexibility.

For the study, the researchers recruited 11 adult men and women who were overweight.

Participants were recruited between November 2014 and August 2016. Adults, generally in good health and aged 20 to 45, were eligible to participate if they had a body mbad index of between 25 and 35 kg / m2. (included), weight between 68 and 100 kg, a regular bedtime between 21:30 and 12 hours, and for women, a regular menstrual cycle.

Participants tried two different strategies of synchronizing meals in random order: a control program in which participants took three meals over a 12-hour period, with a breakfast at 8:00 and a dinner at 20:00. and an eTRF program where participants had three meals over a six-hour period, with breakfast served at 8:00 and dinner at 14:00.

The same quantities and types of food were consumed in both schedules. The fasting periods of the control program included 12 hours a day, while the eTRF program consisted of 18 hours of fasting a day.

Participants in the study followed the different schedules for four consecutive days. On the fourth day, the researchers measured participants' metabolism by placing them in a breathing chamber – a room-like device – where they measured the number of calories, carbohydrates, fats and proteins burned.

The researchers also measured participants' appetite every three hours when they were awake, as well as hunger hormones in the morning and evening.

Although ETF did not have a significant impact on the number of calories burned by the participants, the researchers found that it was possible to reduce the levels of ghrelin, a hunger, and improve some aspects of appetite. It also increased fat burning during the 24-hour day.