The best (and worst) time to snack.
One Minute For Your Health #28
“If you’re not supposed to snack at night why is there a light in the fridge?”
A dad joke classic.
But is it true? Should we be snacking? Does it matter when we snack?
Read on to learn how snacks can support or your health (and how they sometimes don’t).
Should we snack at all?
The case against snacking.
As fasting, intermittent fasting and time restricted eating become ever popular, people are starting to question whether snacking is a good idea.
We used to be taught that we should eat little and often to keep a stable blood sugar and energy level.
Now we know that this simply increases our baseline blood sugar level over time - because the blood sugar never has time to come down.
Thinking about how our ancestors must have lived, snacking doesn’t even seem ‘natural’.
Generations that were much more physically active than our generation seem to have eaten much less often than we do.
We also know that eating too often, with too short intervals, harms our gut bacteria and ability to digest well.
Each time we eat we also experience a slight rise in inflammation, so it’s not a good idea to be eating constantly.
The case for snacking.
On the other hand we also know that not eating for long amounts of time can increase cortisol levels.
This is especially problematic for women because it seems to affect their sex hormone levels - leading to all sorts of emotional, health and weight problems.
When chosen well, snacks can also help us increase our daily fruit and vegetable intake.
During certain developmental stages, like growth spurts in kids and teenagers, more snacks may be needed.
It’s all about your timing.
Research suggests that you should be able to have intervals of between 3 and 7 hours without eating throughout the day.
This time will vary based on how much you last ate, what you last ate, what you are doing, how tired you are, how active you are and probably also your emotional state. It may also be that men find this easier than women.
The research is also clear that night time snacking is much more likely to harm your health.
So no, dad, the light in the fridge is not for night time snacking!
This is because we are less able to control our blood sugar or to properly digest at night. Our gut microbes also rest at night - which means food at night has a negative impact on them.
The nutritionist’s snack schedule:
7:00am Breakfast
11:00am Snack
2:00 pm Lunch
6:00pm Dinner
Notice that there is also a 13 hour break over night.
Can’t handle long gaps between meals?
That might be a sign of poor blood sugar regulation, which is linked with many chronic health problems.
Read more about how to help your body regulate blood sugar here or book a free 15 minute call with me to explore how nutritional therapy can support you.
What’s your snack schedule?
How does snacking affect how you feel? How often do you snack? Would you like me to write a post about the best type of snack? Comment to let me know!
Summary:
Snacking constantly can negatively affect your metabolic and gut health as well as your mood. Too long breaks between meals can drive up your stress levels and affect your sex hormones (especially for women). Try to leave breaks of between 3 and 7 hours between most of your meals and snacks, and definitely avoid eating at night.
P.s. pregnant women and people with certain health conditions will most likely need to snack more often than this, but always listen to your body.
Know someone who is confused about snacking? Share this article with them to help clear things up.
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Links and References:
Miller, R., Benelam, B., Stanner, S.A. and Buttriss, J.L. (2013). Is snacking good or bad for health: An overview. Nutrition Bulletin, [online] 38(3), pp.302–322. Available at: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/nbu.12042 [Accessed 3 Feb. 2021].
International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition. (2019). Snacking in nutrition and health. [online] Available at: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09637486.2019.1595543 [Accessed 3 Feb. 2021].
Xiaoyang, L., Chunlin, Z., Cheng, X., Qian, L., Jin, W., Yongzhi, H. and Peng, Z. (2017). Nighttime snacking is associated with risk of obesity and hyperglycemia in adults: a cross-sectional survey from Chinese adult teachers. The Journal of Biomedical Research, [online] 31(6), p.541. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6307661/ [Accessed 3 Feb. 2021].
Yan, R., Yang, C.S. and Zhang, X. (2021). Maintain host health with time-restricted eating and phytochemicals: A review based on gut microbiome and circadian rhythm. Trends in Food Science & Technology, [online] 108, pp.258–268. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0924224421000091 [Accessed 3 Feb. 2021].
Regmi, P. and Heilbronn, L.K. (2020). Time-Restricted Eating: Benefits, Mechanisms, and Challenges in Translation. iScience, [online] 23(6), p.101161. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004220303461 [Accessed 3 Feb. 2021].
Kahleova, H., Lloren, J.I., Mashchak, A., Hill, M. and Fraser, G.E. (2017). Meal Frequency and Timing Are Associated with Changes in Body Mass Index in Adventist Health Study 2. The Journal of Nutrition, [online] p.jn244749. Available at: https://academic.oup.com/jn/article/147/9/1722/4743530?login=true [Accessed 3 Feb. 2021].
Barrington, W.E. and Beresford, S.A.A. (2019). Eating Occasions, Obesity and Related Behaviors in Working Adults: Does it Matter When You Snack? Nutrients, [online] 11(10), p.2320. Available at: https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/11/10/2320 [Accessed 3 Feb. 2021].
Bergendahl, M., Vance, M.L., Iranmanesh, A., Thorner, M.O. and Veldhuis, J.D. (1996). Fasting as a metabolic stress paradigm selectively amplifies cortisol secretory burst mass and delays the time of maximal nyctohemeral cortisol concentrations in healthy men. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, [online] 81(2), pp.692–699. Available at: https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/81/2/692/2649511?login=true [Accessed 3 Feb. 2021].
Dikensoy, E., Balat, O., Cebesoy, B., Ozkur, A., Cicek, H. and Can, G. (2008). The effect of Ramadan fasting on maternal serum lipids, cortisol levels and fetal development. Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics, [online] 279(2), pp.119–123. Available at: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00404-008-0680-x [Accessed 3 Feb. 2021].
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