Change Your Breakfast, Dinner Timings To Reduce Fat

Changing your meal time can help you lose body fat: study

Did you know? Changing the time at which you have your breakfast and dinner could help you reduce body fat. A study conducted by researchers at University of Surrey found out how changing meal times can have an impact on your dietary intake, body composition and blood risk matters for heart disease and diabetes. People who want to lose weight take care of their diet intake and take utmost care of eating clean and healthy. But what time you eat your meals is also an important determinant for losing weight and fat.

In the study, published in journal of Nutritional Science, researchers found changing meal times helped people lose more than twice the body fat as compared to those who did not alter their meal times. It can thus be inferred that time-restricted feeding can have broad benefits on health.

Changing your meal times can help in reducing body fat
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But what is exactly the right time to eat your meals? Is there a particular protocol which needs to be followed for optimum weight loss? Nutritionist Pooja Malhotra says that meal times are important for people who on a weight loss regime.

Talking about what is the best time to eat breakfast and dinner, Pooja says, "Breakfast should ideally be eaten within 30 minutes of waking up. It should be a wholesome and balanced meal. If you have a schedule in which you wake up very early in the morning and breakfast is not available to you at that time, you can have a fruit, nuts or milk or a combination of all. After that in an hour or so, you can have a wholesome breakfast."

You should include all food groups in your meals for a balanced diet
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Also read: Can Timing Of Meals Help With Weight Loss?

"The best time to have dinner," she continues, "should be around 2 hours before your bed time. If you have a schedule which requires waking up till late, you can have an early dinner and have a cup of milk later in the night."

Also read: Drink Soup Before Your Meals, It Promotes Weight Loss

Timings of meals is an important prerequisite for people who are trying to lose weight. "Your meals should be balanced and include all major food groups. Do not omit food groups from your diet. Opt for small and frequent meals instead of 3 big meals in case you want to lose weight. Include healthy snack items or a healthy drink in between your meals. And do take note of what time to you eat your meals," she says.

(Pooja Malhotra is a nutritionist based in Delhi)

Disclaimer: This content including advice provides generic information only. It is in no way a substitute for qualified medical opinion. Always consult a specialist or your own doctor for more information. NDTV does not claim responsibility for this information.