The Greek physician Hippocrates sentenced “that food be your medicine .” Now, apart from knowing that we are what we eat, it is also important when we do it. And, according to new research from San Diego State University and the Salk Institute (USA), the time we eat food is also crucial to our health.
The researchers conducted an experiment with fruit flies (whose lifespan is about 30 days) to find out what effect changing daily eating patterns would have. Thus, they distributed the flies into two groups: the first group was fed a standard diet of cornmeal throughout the day and the second group only fed for 12 hours a day. The results were evident after 3 weeks. The flies in the second group had better sleep patterns, did not gain as much weight as the others, and their hearts were much healthier . A second experiment was carried out with older flies, discovering that the benefits observed in the young flies were also repeated in these; for example, the hearts of adult flies became healthier.
After two experiments, the scientists sequenced the RNA of the flies, identifying three genetic pathways involved in these effects (prevention of heart problems or longevity). However, “the results reinforce the idea that the daily eating pattern has a profound impact on the body and the brain,” explains Satchidananda Panda, co-author of the study.
Does this fly experiment work for humans? “Humans do not consume the same food every day, and our lifestyle is a determining factor of when we can or cannot eat. But at least, our studies suggest that we should ask ourselves the same questions in human beings ”, clarifies Girish Melkani, co-author of the study.
And it is that when we eat at night we are not changing our diet, but the moment in which we eat , concludes the work that has been published in the journal Science .
