Type 2 diabetes? When NOT to eat dinner (Study)

They say timing is everything.

Especially when it comes to eating and type 2 DIABETES.

Take dinner for example. If you eat too early or too late… it can cause your blood sugar to go haywire.

So, if you’ve found yourself struggling with locking in the “best” time to eat your dinner for optimal blood sugar levels…

Today I’ve got the answer.

A study out of Massachusetts General Hospital says that eating dinner too close to bedtime can significantly ELEVATE the risk of type 2 diabetes.

It turns out that when your melatonin levels (your sleep hormone) are high—which happens right before bedtime—it can disrupt blood sugar control.

This is especially problematic in individuals with a genetic variant in the melatonin receptor MTNR1B, which has been linked to an increased risk of type 2 diabetes.

In other words, eating too late in the evening can cause issues with your blood sugar, especially if you’re already genetically predisposed to diabetes.

Your best course of action is to be as consistent as possible with your dinner time.

If you struggle with sticking to consistent meal times… consider intermittent fasting.

Intermittent fasting is where you eat all your meals within a 6-to-8-hour window each day. For example, you could eat your first meal of the day at 11 a.m. and your final meal (aka dinner) at 6 p.m.

This will ensure you’re getting plenty of vitamins and minerals (and calories) WITHOUT sacrificing taste… or worrying that you’re eating too close to bedtime.

Studies found that intermittent fasting can improve insulin sensitivity and make your body use stored calories and sugar for energy—which also helps reduce your type 2 diabetes risk.

To naturally controlling type 2 diabetes,

Rachel Mace
Editor, eAlert with contributions from the research team

Sources:

ScienceDaily. “How the timing of dinner and genetics affect individuals’ blood sugar control.” https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/01/220125124032.htm