Soraya de Kam1, Jeroen van der Velde2, Joris Hoeks1, Raymond Noordam2, Gabrielle Alblas2, Frits Rosendaal2, Andries Kalsbeek3, David Campbell4, Jean-Pierre Després5, Parminder Raina6, Gerda Pot7, Femke Rutters3, Patrick Schrauwen8, Renée de Mutsert2
1Maastricht University, 2Leiden University Medical Center, 3Amsterdam UMC, Netherlands, 4University of Calgary Cumming School of Medicine, 5Université Laval, Sainte-Foy, 6McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada, 7 Nutrition and Healthcare Alliance, Ede, Netherlands, 8German Diabetes Center, Düsseldorf, Germany. soraya.dekam@maastrichtuniversity.nl
Background
Late eating patterns are associated with impaired metabolic outcomes, but the role of late-night snacking in these associations remains unclear. We examined associations of self-reported timing of food intake and after-dinner snack consumption with total body fat (TBF) and insulin resistance (IR) in a middle-aged population.
Methods
In this a cross-sectional analysis, 3100 participants (51% women) were classified as early or late eaters based on the median midpoint of food intake (14:43 hours). We examined associations of late eating and after-dinner snack with TBF and HOMA-IR using multivariate linear regression with early eating without after-dinner snack as reference category.
Results
The participants had a mean (SD) age of 68 (6) years and BMI of 29 (5) kg/m2. Among late eaters, 95% consumed an after-dinner snack during week- and weekend days. Among early eaters, 58% consumed an after-dinner snack during weekdays and 67% during the weekend. Compared with early eaters without after-dinner snack, after-dinner snacking was associated with higher TBF (1.1%, 0.6; 1.7) and HOMA-IR (7%, 1; 14) among late eaters, but not among early eaters (TBF: 0.4%, -0.3; 1.0; HOMA-IR: 5%, -1; 12). Notably, late eating without after-dinner snack was not associated with TBF or HOMA-IR (Figure).
Discussion/Conclusion
In this middle-aged population, only late eating with after-dinner snack was associated with increased body fat and insulin resistance, whereas late eating without after-dinner snack was not. The influence of the quality of after-dinner snacks remains to be elucidated.