Eating later in the day may contribute to weight gain, according to a new study. The one-week study included 31 overweight and obese adults, mean age 36. Ninety percent were women. They took part in a weight loss study that compared daily calorie restrictions with time-restricted diets, meaning they could only eat during certain hours of the day.
Participants wore an activPAL electronic device on their thigh. This device measured how much time they spent in physical and sedentary activities. They also wore an Actiwatch, which assesses sleep/wake patterns. Participants were asked to use a phone app called MealLogger to photograph and timestamp all meals and snacks throughout the day.
The researchers found that, on average, participants consumed food over a period of 11 hours during the day and slept about 7 hours per night. People who ate later in the day slept at a later time, but they slept about as much as those who finished eating earlier. Later meal timing was associated with a higher body mass index as well as greater body fat.
