Different effects of one meal per day in the evening on metabolic health and physical performance in lean individuals.

Citation: Meessen ECE, Andresen H, van Barneveld T, van Riel A, Johansen EI, Kolnes AJ, Kemper EM, Olde Damink SWM, Schaap FG, Romijn JA, Jensen J, Soeters MR (2022 Differences in the effects of one meal a day on the metabolic health and physical performance of lean individuals in an evening. Front. Physiology. 12: 771944. doi: 10.3389 / fphys.2021.771944

Explanation

Typical food intake is in the manner of three meals every 24 hours, with snacks in between. And most humans spend about 12 to 16 hours or more per day in the postprandial state. One might think that this would lead one to infer from an evolutionary perspective that the human body is physiologically accustomed to less frequent meals. The effect of time-restricted feeding (TRF) on human metabolic parameters and physical performance is ambiguous because metabolic flexibility is a hallmark of metabolic health and is thought to be reduced by semi-continuous feeding.

This study compared the effects of eucaloric feeding provided by one meal per day (22/2) and three meals per day in a randomized crossover trial to investigate the effects of TRF on metabolism and physical performance in free-living healthy lean individuals. 13 participants were included, 11 of whom (5 males/6 females) completed the study, and participants consumed all the calories needed for a stable weight, either at three meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) or at one meal between 17:00 and 19:00 per day, for 11 days per study period.

As a result of the study, it was observed that reducing eucalorie meal to one meal per day reduced total body weight (3 meals/day - 0.5 ± 0.3 vs. 1 meal/day - 1.4 ± 0.3 kg, p = 0.03), fat mass (3 meals/day - 0.1 In addition, the aerobic capacity or intensity was reduced. We also observed an increase in exercise fatty acid oxidation (p < 0.001) without compromising aerobic capacity or strength (p > 0.05), and lower plasma glucose concentrations later in the day during the once-daily intervention (p < 0.05).

The results of this study indicate that continuing to eat one meal per day in the evening reduces body weight and adapts metabolic flexibility during exercise by increasing fat oxidation, but no effects on physical performance have been identified.