Eating a late dinner alters metabolic markers during sleep in a way that could lead to obesity or diabetes, according to the results of a small randomized crossover clinical trial, the Effect of Late Dinner on Nocturnal Metabolism.
Specifically, 20 healthy young adult volunteers made two 3-day visits to a clinical research unit, where they had fixed meals, fixed sleeping times, and serial blood draws under two different conditions: regular dinner (6 PM) or late dinner (10 PM).
The results showed that having a late dinner "induces nocturnal glucose intolerance, and reduces fatty acid oxidation and mobilization, particularly in earlier sleepers," Chenjuan Gu, MD, PhD, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, and colleagues report in a study published online June 11 in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.
