Diet and Exercise Myth #10: Eating late at night makes you fat

This myth may have originated at around the same time as the idea that breakfast is the most important meal of the day (which is itself a myth). The idea that eating in the morning is ‘good’ seems to have somehow morphed into the idea that eating at night is ‘bad’.

There is no science behind the idea that eating after 6pm will make you fat. A well-crafted Israeli study spent six months comparing two groups of people: those who had their biggest meal at breakfast, and those who had their biggest meal at dinner time (which was 8pm or later in this study).

Compared to the early-morning eaters, the late-night eaters got the following results:

1. They lost more fat. They experienced an average 10% greater reduction in waist circumference, body fat level, and overall body weight than their morning-eater counterparts.
2. They experienced less hunger.  They experienced fewer hunger pangs and generally more feelings of fullness during the study period.
3. They ended up with positive changes in hormones related to fat loss.

Other studies have turned up similar results.

My message here isn’t that you should start eating late at night, but the idea that doing so will make you fat is a myth busted.

The most important ingredient in any eating strategy is compliance. Which is a very blunt word to describe consistency, and sticking with it over the long haul.  If eating at night is part of that formula for you, then go ahead and do it.

Ultimately it’s how much you eat that matters for weight loss, not when you eat.