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There is a best time to eat dinner but it differs for everyone, nutritional therapist reveals
The best time to eat dinner is a topic that’s widely debated across the world, but a nutritional therapist has revealed there is a time that best benefits your health.
People in Norway typically eat early between 4pm and 5pm, while Americans have dinner between 6pm and 7pm and those in Spain sometimes sit down as late as 9pm to 11pm – but which is correct?
The best time to eat your dinner
Well, there isn’t one set time because it depends on when you like to go to sleep. We spoke to nutritional therapist Kerry Beeson at Prep Kitchen, who told The Focus that you must eat your dinner at least two hours before going to bed.
“The timing of our meals can affect our sleep. Digesting food is hard work for our body, so if we eat a big meal just before bed our digestive system will be hard at work overnight,” she said. “Try to eat large meals at least two hours before bed.”
However, fatty foods, such as cheese, chocolate, fatty meat, or chips, are particularly hard to digest so it’s best to eat those at least three hours before bedtime.
Heavy meals will disrupt your sleep
So, why is eating a big meal less than two hours before bed so bad? Doctor and resident sleep expert at Time4Sleep, Dr. Hana Patel, explained that a heavy meal makes it difficult to fall asleep and stay in a deep sleep because it forces your body to digest when it should be resting.
“Not only can this cause discomfort, it can prevent your gut bacteria from resting which impacts your gut health, while also interrupting your hormones that regulate your sleep-wake cycle,” she told The Focus.
Eating late also impacts the balance of hunger hormones, which can lead to unhealthy eating habits throughout the day. Late dinners can disrupt the circadian rhythm too, which controls your overall sleep cycle and quality.
The best time to consume meals that are high in calories or carbohydrates is at the start of the wake cycle. For example, a big meal at breakfast means you have more energy for the day ahead, and your body has time to digest it before resting.
What if you have to eat late?
Never eating two hours before bedtime is a good rule, but it doesn’t always fit in with people’s busy schedules.
If you have to eat late due to work or other commitments, Dr. Patel advises eating fewer carbohydrates and always aiming for whole foods over processed ones. This will ensure the meal is as easy to digest as possible, meaning digestion will be quicker and it won’t impact your sleep quality.
Bad sleep can have a disastrous impact on your health, and some of the long-term effects of sleep loss include an increased risk of hypertension, diabetes, obesity, heart disease and depression.
Kerry Beeson is a qualified nutritional therapist at Prep Kitchen with a BSc in Nutritional Medicine from the University of West London.
Dr. Hana Patel is an experienced NHS GP, private GP specialist in mental health and resident sleep expert at Time4Sleep who gained her medical training from University College London.
