Food is essential for the survival of living things. However, consuming the right amount of nutrients at the appropriate time is crucial, tailored to an individual’s bodily needs. The timing of food intake is an emerging aspect of nutrition due to its significant impact on metabolic health, affecting both physical and mental well-being.
The healthiest eating schedule and optimal amount of nutrients for physical and psychological health
Food and Circadian Clock
The timing of eating can synchronize various organs and tissues involved in digestion, absorption, and metabolism, such as the stomach, gut, liver, pancreas, and adipose tissue. Mealtime is important in preventing and managing several lifestyle-related diseases (Parr et al., 2019). Studies conducted in experimental animal models suggest that food intake is a major external synchronizer of peripheral clocks. Irregular eating times can disrupt the circadian system and lead to negative health outcomes such as obesity and diabetes (Minguez et al., 2019).
What is the best time to eat breakfast?
After 6 to 8 hours of sleep, our stomach is empty, and the body needs calories for energy. The time at which you eat your food also determines your metabolism. When we get up in the morning, our metabolism is at its highest. If you do not fuel your body at this time, your body will not be able to sustain the metabolic rate.
What should we eat for breakfast?
Nutrient intake should be high in protein and low in sugar and carbs. Eating simple carbohydrates raises our sugar levels, making us feel hungry again long before lunchtime. So, our breakfast should consist of oatmeal with fresh fruit, an omelet with spinach, or a piece of whole wheat toast with peanut butter to get our digestive tract off to a good start.
How is skipping breakfast linked to health problems?
Research has proved that skipping breakfast is linked to health risk behaviors, poor mental health indicators, and poor academic performance. Skipping breakfast is associated with depression, lower happiness, posttraumatic stress disorder, loneliness, and sleep problems (Pengpid & Paltzer, 2020).
What is the ideal time to eat lunch?
Our digestive power is most substantial between 12:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. At this time, the body can digest a highly nutritious meal and absorb all the nutrients properly.
Best nutritious lunch
A good lunch typically consists of lean protein (such as lean meats like turkey, chicken, or fish), complex carbohydrates (like brown rice, whole wheat pasta, or bread), fiber, and healthy fats.
What is the right time to eat dinner?
Eating too close to bedtime increases your blood sugar and insulin, which causes you to have a hard time falling asleep. Therefore, our last meal should be the lightest of the day and eaten at least three hours before we go to sleep. When we eat a meal at 10 p.m. or very close to our bedtime, this puts pressure on our body, as it is when we sleep that the liver detoxifies. Thus, we should eat our dinner on time to avoid the disturbed detoxification process.
What is the perfect balanced dinner?
According to the National Sleep Foundation, eating certain foods before bed can interfere with sleep due to the body’s digestive processes. They recommend avoiding foods with processed sugars just before bed. Eating a banana before bed provides potassium that may prevent nighttime leg cramping. Including fruits with higher magnesium, such as plantains, apricots, or dates, can also aid in relaxation and better sleep. Before sleep, avoid caffeine-related products and drinks if you intend to sleep and have insomnia.
Snacks between meals
The gap between two meals should not be more than 4 hours. A gap longer than this can lead to acidity. You must eat snacks and fruits in between meals. You should have at least two snacks between breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Ideal food nutrients before cognitive and creative work
Research shows that tyrosine-containing nutrients like chicken, turkey, fish, peanuts, almonds, avocados, bananas, milk, cheese, and yogurt. Po positively affects memory. In addition, enhanced effects on attention were observed in some studies supplemented with tyrosine. Tyrosine, an amino acid precursor for dopamine, is considered cognitive top-down control and thus enhances convergent thinking (Colzato et al., 2014). Avoid high-fat meals; although high-fat meals provide more energy, they make the digestive system work harder, reducing oxygen levels in the brain and making us muddled and tired. Food that contains monounsaturated fats, like avocados, nuts, olive oil, canola oil, and peanut oil. It can improve our memory and help our brain work harder, better, faster, and stronger. Small doses of caffeine help you feel refreshed and more focused.
Best food before exercise or a workout
Waiting a few hours after eating gives the body enough time to digest the meal. Simple carbohydrates are short-term sources of energy. Suppose a pre-workout meal includes too many simple carbohydrates. In that case, a person may feel a drop in energy before they finish their workout. Ideally, a person should eat a meal rich in complex carbohydrates and protein around 2–3 hours before exercising.
Food before laborious work or athletic activity
If you are an athlete or getting ready for a game, match, or competition, eat a well-balanced meal. It takes time for the body to digest properly, so eat three to four hours before a practice, game, or performance. Drinking plenty of water before the four events or some hours of work is important to avoid dehydration. Avoid fatty food, which can leave you feeling tired and sluggish.
Conclusion
Our body’s cells need fuel to work correctly and function properly. This fuel of energy comes from the food that we intake. Mostly, it is considered what nutrients are essential. However, people ignore an important aspect of nutrition, i.e., the timing of food intake. Research has proven the relationship between food intake and timing and duration. So, it is necessary to consider the food time for a healthy physical and psychological life.
References
Colzato, L. S., de Haan, A. M., & Hommel, B. (2014). Food for creativity: Tyrosine promotes deep thinking. Psychological Research, 79(5), 709–714. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00426- 014-0610-4
Lopez-Minguez, J., Gómez-Abellán, P., & Garaulet, M. (2019). Timing of Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner. Effects on Obesity and Metabolic Risk. Nutrients, 11(11), 2624. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11112624
Parr, E. B., Heilbronn, L. K., & Hawley, J. A. (2019). A Time to Eat and a Time to Exercise. Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews, 48(1), 4–10. https://doi.org/10.1249/jes.0000000000000207
Pengpid, S., & Peltzer, K. (2020). Skipping Breakfast and Its Association with Health Risk Behaviour and Mental Health Among University Students in 28 Countries. Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity: Targets and Therapy, Volume 13, 2889–2897. https://doi.org/10.2147/dmso.s241670
TIMESOFINDIA.COM. (2020, July 8). Weight Loss: This juice can help reduce belly fat. The Times of India. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/life-style/health-fitness/diet/weight loss-this-juice-can-help-to-reduce-belly-fat/photostory/76836662.cms?picid=7683
What to eat before a workout to lose weight and build muscle. (2018, September 3). Https://Www.Medicalnewstoday.Com/Articles/322963#protein. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/322963#protein
