Top News in Endocrinology November 05 2018 (9 of 13)

A big evening dinner should not be on the menu. Eating the majority of a person's daily calories in the evening can lead to an increased risk of developing prediabetes and high blood pressure among Hispanic / Latino individuals, according to the American Association of Scientific Sessions, 2018 in the field of cardiovascular science for researchers and clinicians.

Researchers analyzed the meal timing of 12,708 participants, ages 18 to 76, from the Hispanic Community Health Study / Study of Latinos and found that participants consumed, on average, 35.7% of their daily calories after 6 pm More than half of the study participants (56.6%) reported consuming more than 30% of their food intake after 6 pm

The results of the study, funded by the American Heart Association, showed that:

• Each calorie consumed after 6 p.m.-about 20 calories in a 2,000-calorie daily diet-was associated with higher glucose fasting, insulin and insulin resistance, all of which are associated with an increased risk of diabetes.
• Eating 30% or more of a day's calories after 6pm was associated with a 23% higher risk of developing high blood pressure and a 19% higher risk of becoming pre-diabetic compared to people who ate less than 30% of their calories after 6 pm and therefore consumed the bulk of their calories before 6 pm
• Nighttime eating was not associated with being overweight and obese or having central adiposity (fat).

"There is increasing evidence that we are important," said Nour Makarem, PhD, lead author of the study and a postdoctoral fellow at Columbia University Medical Center in New York.

"In our study we show you most of your calories before 6 p.m., you may have better cardiovascular health," she said. "Your meal time and nutrition can be an important strategy to help lower the risk for heart disease."

Hispanics / Latinos to show a high percentage of daily calories in the evening can be associated with developing cardiovascular disease risk factors, particularly prediabetes and high blood pressure. But, Makarem said, it's also one of the early postponements on meal timing and its association with heart disease risk factors within the US population in general.

The study was cross-sectional in nature, which means participants' blood glucose levels, blood pressure, meal timing and other data were collected at one time without an opportunity to follow up. Researchers indicate future studies should look at the long-term effects of mental disorders.

The American Heart Association recently released a scientific statement highlighting the need for population studies to clarify the relationship between meal and cardiometabolic risk.

Co-authors are Brooke Aggarwal, EdD, MS; Dorothy Sears, PhD; Marie-Pierre St-Onge, PhD; Sheila Castañeda, PhD; Gregory Talavera, MD, MPH; Catherine Marinac, PhD, Ruth Patterson, PhD; Daniela Sotres-Alvarez, PhD; Melawhy Garcia, PhD, and Linda Gallo, PhD. Author disclosures are on the abstract.

The American Heart Association funded this study. The Hispanic Community Health Study / Study of Latinos is also funded by the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute.