Why Eating After 9 PM Can Harm Your Health

Eating dinner late? Your metabolism, sleep, and heart might not like it! Find out why early meals are a game-changer for your health.

Due to social events, hectic schedules, or late-night desires, many people now frequently eat late at night. However, health professionals caution that eating dinner late, particularly after 9 PM, can have detrimental effects on general health. Sleep disturbance, weight gain, and an elevated risk of heart disease are some reasons to reevaluate when you eat dinner. A late dinner once in a while might not have serious repercussions, but eating beyond 9 PM on a regular basis can be harmful to your health.

How Late Dinners Affect Health

Sleep disturbance

The quality of sleep can be greatly impacted by eating late at night. Research indicates that those who eat later typically go to bed later, which can cause a disturbance in their sleep schedule (1). Additionally, eating late at night can upset your stomach, which can lead to vivid or even strange nightmares.

University students who snacked late at night were more likely to have strange dreams, according to a 2015 study by two Canadian psychologists (2). The inability of the body to properly digest food while at rest may be the cause of this. Furthermore, “Eating later can promote a negative profile of weight, energy, and hormone markers, such as higher glucose and insulin, which are implicated in diabetes, and cholesterol and triglycerides, which are linked to cardiovascular problems and other health conditions,” says Namni Goel, Research Associate Professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine.

Higher Chance of Putting on Weight

Eating dinner early helps with weight management and digestion. Dr. Rupali Dutta, a nutritionist, emphasizes the importance of meal time in managing weight, “Eating dinner early promotes better digestion, and anything that promotes better digestion promotes weight loss.” The movement of the sun is wired into the organism. Food is more likely to stay in the intestines and impair digestion the later we eat. Your body uses the food more effectively and you feel fuller sooner if you eat dinner early. Calories that are not used are stored as fat.

Late-night meals are more likely to be turned into fat because metabolism slows down in the evening, which over time might result in unintended weight gain.

Bloating and Poor Digestion

Eating late at night frequently results in a lesser time gap between dinner and bedtime, which leaves little time for adequate digestion. This may result in indigestion, bloating, and acid reflux. When meals are properly spaced out, the body can break down food more effectively and perform at its best.

Increased Risk of High Blood Pressure and Heart Disease

Meal timing is very important for heart health. Late-night meals can be especially detrimental for people with diabetes, thyroid issues, PCOD, and cardiovascular problems, according to nutritionist Meher Rajput. She clarifies, “As Indians, we are accustomed to having dinners that are high in sodium. Our meals frequently contain substantial amounts of salt, from meat and veggies to dal and papad. In addition to causing bloating and water retention, eating salty meals late at night raises the risk of high blood pressure.”

Late eating has been associated with a misaligned body clock, which has been connected to higher fasting blood sugar levels and hypertension, both of which are risk factors for heart disease.

What is the Best Time for Dinner?

According to health experts, the optimal time for dinner is between 6 and 8 p.m., as this allows the body enough time to process meals before going to bed. This lowers the chance of long-term health issues, enhances digestion, and maintains improved metabolic health.

Trying to eat early will help you maintain a healthy lifestyle and enhance your general well-being.

References:

1. Association of Meal Timing with Sleep Quality and Anxiety According to Chronotype: A Study of University Students
   (Luz CSDS, Fonseca AETPD, Santos JS, Araujo JF, Duarte LL, Moreno CRC. Association of Meal Timing with Sleep Quality and Anxiety According to Chronotype: A Study of University Students. Clocks Sleep. 2024 Mar 11;6(1):156-169. doi: 10.3390/clockssleep6010011. PMID: 38534799; PMCID: PMC10969532.)




2. Dreams of the Rarebit Fiend: food and diet as instigators of bizarre and disturbing dreams
   (Nielsen T, Powell RA. Dreams of the Rarebit Fiend: food and diet as instigators of bizarre and disturbing dreams. Front Psychol. 2015 Feb 17;6:47. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00047. PMID: 25741294; PMCID: PMC4330685.)

Source-Medindia