Ideally, prepare a light dinner and allow at least two hours to pass before going to bed.
In Spain we are used to having dinner very late but it has been shown that it is not good for your health. However, the custom of skipping dinner to lose weight is also being implemented, a trend that is not healthy either. The idea is to dine early and little.
The ideal is to dine early and little
Nighttime fasting is essential for the proper functioning of our body. The ideal is to leave between dinner and breakfast a period of at least 11 hours. Thus, for the vast majority of Spaniards, it would be better to have dinner around eight o’clock in the evening.
More than 10 hours must elapse between dinner and breakfast
Not only timing is important, but also quantity. A report from the American Heart Association (AHA) recommends have a good breakfast in the morning and eat a small dinner in the evening to reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke and other cardiovascular disorders.
What happens to the body when you don’t eat dinner?
If you don’t eat anything from noon to the next morning, you can spend up to 6 p.m. without eating. This can cause hypoglycemia (lower glucose levels) and a deficiency in nutrients such as proteins, vitamins and minerals.
Accustoming the body to long periods of fasting can also slow metabolism. By giving him little food, he becomes more economical. What is proven is that the nocturnal food restrictionEating little helps to lose weight because it promotes the burning of fat reserves and regulates appetite, reducing the feeling of hunger.
How does centar tard affect health?
eat too late increases the risk of heart disease and diabetesrecalls a study of Biomedical Research Institute (belonging to the National Autonomous University of Mexico). The main reason is that we are acting against our biological clock because the body does not need as much energy later in the day.
The authors of the research, conducted on mice, checked how those who ate when it was their turn directed triglycerides (a type of fat) muscle or brown fat (the one that helps us lose weight) to better utilize their energy.
In exchange, in those who ate at odd hours, triglycerides eventually built up in the blood. High levels of fats in the blood increase the risk of cardiovascular disorders (heart attack, stroke, etc.) and diabetes.
“During the hours when we have to sleep, absorption into muscle tissue is lower and brown fat needs much less energy because it does not work at night. And all these processes are regulated by our biological clock », explains to Saber Vivir Ruud M. Buijs, lead author of the Mexican study.
Precisely to verify the importance of the circadian rhythm in this different response of the organism, the researchers canceled the part of the brain which regulates the internal clock of the mice. Without this active region, the level of fats did not skyrocket among those who ate when they should be sleeping.
Getting up to snack at dawn can have even worse effects
“When we eat dinner very late, we take in nutrients at the wrong time, and some of them, like plasma glucose and triglycerides, rise higher and longer than if eaten during the day”tells us Juan Antonio Madrid, researcher at the Chronobiology Laboratory of the University of Murcia (Cronolab). The effects on metabolism can be even worse in those who get up to snack at dawn, this expert explains.
what should dinners include
The recommendation is not to abuse the carbohydratesespecially if they are simple (white flour, pastry products…). “Taking them at night is associated with a greater rise in blood sugar”explains researcher Juan Antonio Madrid to Saber Vivir.
It is important that you choose easily digestible ingredients (vegetable creams, grilled vegetables, fish, white meats, etc.). Try to include foods rich in tryptophan (eggs, bananas…), which help you fall asleep.
The way you cook them also matters: bet on the oven, iron, steam… and discard fried or very fatty stews and energetic.
As for breakfast, it should include a serving of whole grains, skimmed dairy product and fruit. From time to time, you can add a handful of dried fruits oh fat free sausage (turkey breast, serrano ham…).