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Professors at the University of Murcia, in collaboration with researchers from U.S. universities Harvard and Tufts, determined in a study that the main meal time is a factor in weight loss.
Marta Garaulet, Professor of Physiology at the University of Murcia and lead author of the work, published this month in the International Journal of Obesity, said that "the results of the study indicate that individuals who eat the main meal late noon (after 3) show a significantly lower weight loss than those who eat early (before 3) ".
To evaluate the role of feeding time, the researchers studied 420 overweight participants who continued treatment for 20 weeks weight loss based on the Mediterranean diet.
Participants were divided between those who ate early (before 3) and late eaters, according to the time of the main meal at midday, which is in Spain for 40 percent of total daily calories.
The researchers also highlight the schedule of breakfast and dinner (meals smaller and less energy) did not influence weight loss.
The paper discusses other factors that play a role in lowering weight, such as energy intake and expenditure or appetite hormones and sleep duration.
"This is the first large prospective study shows that the timing of meals predicts efficacy in weight loss," explains Garaulet, adding that future therapeutic strategies should incorporate not only the consumption of calories and macronutrients, as classically is made, but also the time of the meal.
Source: Universidad de Murcia
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