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Got the midnight munchies? Well, researchers are suggesting that you might want to think twice about heading for the fridge post-7pm.
Cardiologists working out of a university in Turkey believe that eating two hours before heading to bed can keep you on “high alert”, preventing your body from getting the rest it needs. Ultimately, they suggest, this can have a detrimental impact on your heart health.
This new research indicates that this is all down to your blood pressure levels; at nighttime, your blood pressure is meant to drop by 10 per cent in order for your body to wind down.
However, during this study, researchers found that those who ate close to bedtime didn’t have a significant decrease in their blood pressure, which can lead to heightened levels of adrenaline and impact your circadian rhythm.
Dr Ebru Ozpelit, Dokuz Eylul University’s associate professor of cardiology, explains that this discovery means we need to think consciously about when we eat, not just what we eat.
“We must define the ideal frequency and timing of meals because how we eat may be as important as what we eat,” she says.
So, next time you want to whip up that Thai beef salad for dinner, set your deadline for 6pm.
