Eating most of your daily calories early in the day may help fight weight gain, stabilize blood sugar fluctuations and shorten the period of high blood sugar levels, new research suggests. It shows that.
“This type of diet may protect prediabetic and obese people from progressing to type 2 diabetes due to its effects on blood sugar levels,” said lead study author and endocrinology fellow at New York University Langone Health. said Joanne H. Bruno, MD, PhD.
The new report, which was recently pushed back at the Endocrine Society’s annual meeting, evaluates early time-restricted feeding (eTRF), which restricts calories during the first eight hours of the day. Previous research has found that this form of intermittent fasting may improve cardiometabolic health and blood sugar levels. However, the research team wanted to determine whether these improvements were related to weight loss or fasting strategies.
The study, led by researchers at New York University’s Grossman School of Medicine, is the first to evaluate the effects of early time-restricted nutrient intake on blood sugar and inflammation, independent of weight loss.
For the study, researchers tested 10 participants with pre-diabetes and obesity, comparing eTRF (80 percent of calories burned before 1 p.m.) with a normal eating pattern (50 percent of calories burned after 4 p.m.). percentage) were compared.
Patients were randomized to eTRF or usual feeding pattern for the first 7 days and switched to the alternative group for the next 7 days. To determine the weight-independent effects of this strategy, food was provided to meet the patient’s caloric needs for weight maintenance. Patients wore a continuous glucose (blood sugar) monitor throughout the study.
The study, led by researchers at New York University Grossman School of Medicine, is the first to evaluate the effects of early time-restricted nutrient intake on blood sugar, independent of weight loss. Credit: NYU Langone Health
“Just one week of eTRF feeding reduced the amount of time these people had high blood sugar levels,” said study lead author Jose O. Aleman, MD, assistant professor in the Division of Endocrinology in the Department of Medicine. Diabetes and Metabolism, New York University Grossman School of Medicine. “Study results show that consuming the majority of calories early in the day reduces the time that blood sugar levels rise, thereby improving metabolic health.”
Dr. Aleman and his colleagues found that the participants’ weight remained stable throughout the study. Early time-restricted feeding reduced the mean amplitude of blood glucose excursions and reduced the time spent above range (glucose > 140 mg/dL) compared to the usual eating pattern group. Time in range was similar between the eTRF and normal feeding pattern groups.
“Based on this data, eTRF may be a useful dietary strategy for diabetes prevention,” Dr. Bruno concluded. “Further research is needed to understand the true overall benefits of these intervention strategies.”
Conference: ENDO 2023, Endocrine Society Annual Meeting
Funding for this study was provided by National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute Institutional Training Grant T32HL098129. National Institutes of Health Permit K08 DK117064. Additional funding was provided by the Shapiro Silverberg Fund for the Advancement of Translational Research at Rockefeller University.
In addition to Dr. Bruno and Dr. Aleman, researchers from New York University Langone College who were involved in the study included Shabnam Naserifar, MD; Dr. Sally Banegas. and Dr. Colin Popp.