This Form of Intermittent Fasting May Help Counter Weight Gain, Improve Blood Sugar Fluctuations, Metabolic Health Better and Prevent “Prediabetes or Obesity from Progressing to Type-2 Diabetes” Better, According to a New Study
According to a recent study, increasing the consumption of daily calories during the early part of the day may help mitigate weight gain, stabilize blood sugar fluctuations, and decrease the duration of elevated blood sugar levels.
“This type of feeding,” as explained by lead author Joanne H. Bruno, “through its effect on blood sugar, may prevent those with prediabetes or obesity from progressing to type 2 diabetes.”
Unveiled during the annual meeting of the Endocrine Society on June 15, a novel research report investigated the effects of early time-restricted feeding (eTRF) on blood sugar levels and inflammation, independent of weight loss.
Previous studies had already indicated that this form of intermittent fasting, which involves restricting calorie intake to the first eight hours of the day, could enhance cardiometabolic health and glycemic control.
However, the objective of this study, led by researchers from NYU Grossman School of Medicine, was to ascertain whether these benefits were attributed to weight loss or the specific fasting strategy itself.
The study involved ten participants with prediabetes and obesity who were randomly assigned to follow either the eTRF pattern (consuming 80 percent of calories before 1PM) or a conventional feeding pattern (consuming 50 percent of calories after 4PM) for the initial seven days.
Subsequently, they switched to the alternative pattern for the following seven days. Throughout the study, the participants’ caloric needs for weight maintenance were met by providing them with the required food.
To evaluate the effects of the strategy independent of weight loss, the patients wore continuous glucose monitors to track their blood sugar levels. This research marks the first attempt to analyze the impacts of eTRF on glycemia and inflammation independently from changes in body weight.
“We decreased the time these individuals were having high blood sugar levels with just one week of eTRF feeding,” explains study senior author Jose O. Aleman.
The results of the study suggest “that eating a majority of one’s calories earlier in the day reduces the time that the blood sugar is elevated, thereby improving metabolic health.”
During the study, Dr. Aleman and the research team observed that the participants’ weights remained consistent. The implementation of early time-restricted feeding resulted in a reduction in the average extent of glycemic excursion and a decrease in the time spent with blood glucose levels above the designated threshold of 140mg/dL when compared to the group following the usual eating pattern.
However, the duration within the target blood sugar range was similar between the eTRF and usual feeding pattern groups.
“Based on this data, eTRF may be a helpful dietary strategy for diabetes prevention,” concludes Dr. Bruno. “Further studies are needed to understand the true overall benefit of these intervention strategies.”
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