When you’re coming home late at night knackered and hungry, do you find yourself stopping on the way to gorge on a burger and chips, or once home, raiding the fridge before you’ve even taken your jacket off? Yes, it’s a scenario we’re all familiar with but it’s not good for us.
Eating at the ‘wrong biological time’ — such as late at night — throws our internal rhythm out of kilter, triggering a surge of insulin that lights up our metabolism at times when it shouldn’t be active. And it does it in ways that are detrimental to our health.
This could play a significant role in developing obesity, metabolic disorders, diabetes and heart problems, said Dr David Bechtold, who came up with this theory when he worked on the Manchester University study.
Going by the clock
Your body clock, your internal (circadian) rhythm, is under chemical control through your hormones. In a healthy person, levels of cortisol (the stress hormone and wake-up hormone) peak around 8 am, giving us a rush of energy and triggering the adrenal glands to pump adrenalin.
By mid-morning, the cortisol levels start dropping, while the adrenalin (for energy) and serotonin (a mood stabiliser) keep pumping. At midday, metabolism and your core body temperature ramp up, making us hungry and ready to eat.
After noon, cortisol levels start to fall away. Metabolism slows down and tiredness sets in. Later, serotonin converts into melatonin, which induces sleepiness. Our blood sugar levels drop, and at 3 am, when we’re deeply asleep, cortisol levels hit their 24-hour low.
Upsetting the balance
Eating late at night when blood sugar levels are dropping, insulin levels are low and sleep hormones are rising, throws our metabolism completely out of kilter.
Any derangement of an internal rhythm disrupts the delicate balance of hormones and sugar levels in our body, making us want to eat more and eventually pile on the pounds.
Dr Bechtold says we evolved to “eat with the sun” and doing so helps our bodies work efficiently
— Daily Mirror