Breakfast lovers rejoice! A 2023 study published in the International Journal of Epidemiology suggests that the timing of the most important meal of the day could profoundly impact your health.
The research reveals a connection between eating an early breakfast and a 59% lower risk of developing diabetes. These findings could transform our understanding of how daily routine affects health outcomes, prompting us to reconsider not only what we eat but when we eat.
In this article, we’ll discuss the study’s findings.
What the Study Found
To arrive at these conclusions, research teams from ISGlobal in Spain and INSERM in France examined the link between meal frequency and timing and the occurrence of type 2 diabetes among 103,312 adult participants (79% of which were women).
Researchers conducted an extensive analysis of the participants’ eating habits and found that those who consumed breakfast early in the day experienced a remarkable 59% reduced diabetes risk.
Throughout the study, the researchers observed 963 new cases of type 2 diabetes. They determined that the risk of developing diabetes was significantly higher among participants who regularly ate breakfast after 9 a.m. compared to those who ate breakfast before 8 a.m.
These findings challenge conventional notions about breakfast habits and other dietary trends like intermittent fasting.
Anna Palomar-Cros, ISGlobal researcher and lead study author, said in a statement, “Biologically, this makes sense, as skipping breakfast is known to affect glucose and lipid control, as well as insulin levels. This is consistent with two meta-analyses that conclude that skipping breakfast increases the risk of type 2 diabetes.”
The researchers also found that eating a late dinner after 10 p.m. increased diabetes risk while eating smaller meals more frequently throughout the day was associated with a lower risk.
Furthermore, extended fasting periods were beneficial only if done by having an early breakfast and dinner.
“Our results suggest that a first meal before 8 a.m. and a last meal before 7 p.m. may help reduce the incidence of type 2 diabetes,” said Manolis Kogevinas, ISGlobal researcher and study co-author, in a statement.
The Bottom Line
If you’re already eating breakfast, kudos to you! If you’re eating it after 9 a.m., you may want to consider moving your mealtime earlier—and eating an earlier dinner as well. New research found that eating breakfast before 8 a.m. was associated with a 59% reduced risk of developing diabetes.
Having smaller meals throughout the day and eating dinner before 7 p.m. were also associated with reduced risk. Eating a late dinner past 10 p.m. was associated with an increased risk. These findings highlight the importance of paying attention to when you eat, not just what you eat, in boosting your health.
