Are you late for dinner every day and are you living a life of “sleep after eating”? It is said that if you go to bed immediately after eating, you will gain weight, but it is not just about body shape. In the long run, it increases the risk of various diseases. We will explain the ideal time for dinner and tips on how to devise a diet that even people who tend to have late dinners can do.
It seems that there are many people who come home late every day and go to bed as soon as they have dinner.
The author receives nutritional counseling at a hospital, but the patients who come to the hospital are elderly, and many of them are enjoying the so-called “retirement life”. It may seem surprising, but not only office workers who work late and so-called bargain career type, but also elderly people who can use freely 24 hours a day, meal times are irregular. , It is not uncommon for people to end up eating late.
It seems that both working people and retired elderly people need to reconsider the dinner time, which is the end of the day.
Why eating before going to bed is bad for your health and why your risk of getting sick increases
I think many people have a common perception that eating late is bad for your health. So how exactly is it bad for you?
More than anything else, the most obvious thing is that just before going to bed, it is a time when energy consumption is reduced. Even if you go to the trouble of eating, you are only sleeping, so the energy you eat will be less used as a source of activity. Any excess that is not used is more likely to be stored as fat. It is natural for dieters to be concerned about late-night snacks and dinner times, saying, “Eating before going to bed makes you fat.”
And the accumulation of fat isn’t just about looks. The risk of “lifestyle-related diseases” increases. In other words, the risk of diseases like diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and various cancers are all increased by eating late.
People who are chronically late eaters need to worry about their long-term health as well as their physical appearance.
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Ideal dinner time zone / timing guideline
What time is the ideal time to eat dinner? In the past, “ideal dinner time” such as “18:00” or “preferably by 19:00” was mentioned, but it is not realistic because each person’s life rhythm is different. Instead of thinking in terms of the time of day, I think it would be better to think in terms of the time of day, such as “it is desirable to finish eating at least two hours before going to bed.”
However, even this can be difficult for employees. If you are living after 22:00 when you come home, if you eat from there and stay up for 2 hours after eating, you will go to bed easily around 24:00. When you think about the next day’s work time, it’s sleep time that will inevitably be cut.
Whether you should have time after eating or whether you should have time to sleep are both difficult questions. Considering the detrimental effects of work performance and long-term sleep deprivation on health, I sometimes think that securing sleep time should be valued, rather than thinking about leaving two hours after meals.
If it is difficult to maintain the best condition, it is important to aim for a slightly better condition and maintain a balance.
On days when dinner is likely to be late at night, splitting dinner into two is also effective.
If you can’t keep your dinner time zone, first of all, let’s be conscious of adjusting your life rhythm. I explained earlier that you don’t need to be particular about the time of day, but if the meal times are too different, you can decide the approximate times for breakfast, lunch, and dinner by yourself and arrange them as much as possible. It’s pretty effective (if you’re busy, this can be difficult…).
If you still find yourself eating dinner late, split your dinner in two. Before starting overtime or evening plans, I eat rice balls and other calorie-packed foods first. Before going to bed, there is also a method of picking up a little bit of something that fills your stomach even though it is low in calories, such as vegetables.