Meal times vary from country to country: Spaniards don’t eat dinner until 9pm, while Brits usually eat their last meal between 6pm and 8pm. But does the time you eat affect your health? Nutritionists say so too.
In an article for Glamour US, journalist Daniel Sinai talks about his eating habits: This young woman likes to eat early in the evening, preferably by 7 pm. In their opinion, this can really have health benefits. The journalist actually collected the comments of several nutritionists on the subject.
When should you eat dinner, according to nutrition experts?
“Ideally, dinner should be eaten at least three hours before bedtime,” Sarah Ream, a registered dietitian at the Orlando Center for Health Improvement, told Glamour.com. “This way, you can time your meals to align with your circadian rhythm and ensure that your food is properly digested,” she added. Indeed, eating dinner earlier can help with digestion and sleep. “Eating at least 2-3 hours before bedtime can help with sleep and digestion,” says Samantha Cochran, a registered dietitian at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. “If you eat too close to bedtime and can’t fall asleep, your digestive system may wake you up. Eating earlier can help prevent heartburn and indigestion,” she adds.
And finally, eating too late can also have a negative impact on blood sugar levels. “As our bodies prepare for a night’s sleep, our insulin sensitivity decreases, which means we’re less responsive to the insulin our bodies produce, negatively impacting blood sugar levels and increasing the risk of developing diabetes if we eat too often,” says Ream. “When our eating habits are out of sync with our normal circadian rhythms (also known as ‘diet jet lag’), it can increase our risk of obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease,” she added.
For all these reasons, an earlier dinner is a better option for your health and well-being.