# Is eating late at night really bad for you? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 26, 2005, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210 "2005-07-26T13:03:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2005, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/1 "2005-07-26T13:03:04Z")
I usually eat 2 meals a day. I’ll eat lunch at around 12:30PM and then dinner at around 10:30PM. People are always shocked that I eat dinner so late. Well, with 2 kids under 2, it’s tough for my wife and I to have dinner until that time. Especially since I don’t usually get home from work until 8PM, and then try to get out to the gym. After dinner, I’ll usually watch TV and go to sleep around 11:30PM. I’ve heard from everyone that eating dinner so late is bad for you. The most common reasons that I’ve been given are 1) the food just sits there and 2) when you eat that late and then sleep, you can’t burn off the calories. I don’t know whether they’re right, but these don’t strike me as valid. First of all, I doubt that the food just “sits” there. Does digestion stop when I’m sleeping? If so, why are people still hungry in the morning even when they’ve eaten a big meal late at night? Secondly, why does it matter that I’m not burning as many calories while I sleep? I’m still burning them during the day, right? It is necessary to burn calories immediately after I eat? So is the “Don’t eat dinner too late” advice a myth, or is there any validity to it? ---
**Author:** ![SiXSwordS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/49beb7/32.png) [@SiXSwordS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SiXSwordS)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2005, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/2 "2005-07-26T13:11:31Z")
Sorry, I don’t have an answer, but my comment is that I’ve heard that eating late causes you to sleep poorly. I haven’t changed my eating habits becasue of that warning. ---
**Author:** ![dolphinboy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dolphinboy/32/330_2.png) [@dolphinboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dolphinboy)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2005, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/3 "2005-07-26T13:15:00Z")
Apparently you shouldn’t eat late at night if you are concerned about gaining weight. According to WedMD: “Eating breakfast has been shown to be one of the best ways to jump-start the metabolism. Studies also suggest that eating late at night can lead to weight gain because the body stores fat most efficiently in the middle of the night.” “If you keep eating during the period when your body is winding down for the night, you are supplying fuel at the time when it most likely to be turned into fat,” she says. ---
**Author:** ![toadspittle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c0e974/32.png) [@toadspittle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toadspittle)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2005, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/4 "2005-07-26T13:24:42Z")
[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3263249.stm](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3263249.stm) > [@](#): > > **Eating at night myth 'exploded’** > > Eating late at night does not make you fat, according to a study. > > Scientists at Oregon Health & Science University in the United States carried out tests on 47 female monkeys. > > They found no link between when the animals ate and whether or not they put on weight. > > … > > During the study, the scientists also found the monkeys ate their food at different times of the day. Many ate mostly in the evenings and at night. > > However, perhaps unexpectedly the researchers found no link between when the animals ate and how much weight they put on. > > “Time and again, we’ve been told that eating late at night should be avoided because it will cause weight gain,” said Dr Cameron. > > "However, there isn’t a lot of research to back up this commonly held belief, which may in fact be somewhat of an urban myth. > > "In conducting this study, we noted the times that animals ate. Some of the monkeys ate most of their food during the evening and night-time hours. > > “However, weight gain and the time of day that the animals were feeding had no correlation whatsoever.” > > Nigel Denby of the British Dietetic Association backed the findings. > > “The bottom line is a calorie is a calorie whenever you eat it,” he told BBC News Online. > > "Your body doesn’t really recognise what time of day it is. It is a little bit of a myth. > > "I think it dates back to when people started taking an interest in diets. People are more likely to eat fatty snacks at night when they are watching television. In order to try to avoid that, they put restrictions on when they should eat. > > “Certainly, if you need to eat after 6pm or 8pm it is probably healthier to sit down and have a meal. Otherwise, you risk grazing on fatty foods.” So it seems more likely that the avoid-eating-late thing is really more about avoid-snacking-on-high-calorie-crap-late-at-night. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2005, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/5 "2005-07-26T14:25:41Z")
In India, it is the custom to eat a huge meal right before the afternoon nap and again right before going to bed at night. ---
**Author:** ![MikeS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MikeS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeS)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2005, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/6 "2005-07-26T14:34:47Z")
People who have problems with gastric reflux disease (chronic heartburn, essentially) are told not to eat for an hour or two before going to sleep, the logic being that acid is more likely to escape the stomach & damage the esophagus when you’re lying down than when you’re sitting or standing upright. ---
**Author:** ![Bula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Bula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bula)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2005, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/7 "2005-07-26T15:11:19Z")
> [@toadspittle](#): > > [BBC NEWS | Health | Eating at night myth 'exploded'](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3263249.stm) > > So it seems more likely that the avoid-eating-late thing is really more about avoid-snacking-on-high-calorie-crap-late-at-night. As already stated, the reason that eating in the evening or at night can lead to weight gain is that the body is preparing to sleep, so unless that study made sure the monkeys had the same sleeping patterns, it can’t be a fair test. For example if one monkey sleeps at night and eats during the day, and another eats at night and sleeps during the day, it’s not surprising there would be no difference in weight gain between them. It’s not the time on the clock that matters, it’s the time of eating in relation to the time of sleeping, and it doesn’t appear that the researchers took that into account. ---
**Author:** ![toadspittle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c0e974/32.png) [@toadspittle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toadspittle)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2005, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/8 "2005-07-26T15:45:39Z")
> [@Bula!](#): > > As already stated, the reason that eating in the evening or at night can lead to weight gain is that the body is preparing to sleep, Well, one theory, not necessarily “The Reason.” Another theory is that eating late isn’t bad for you per se, but rather that, when people DO eat late at night, they rarely sit down to the same healthy sort of meal they might have eaten at 6PM, but instead pick at a lot of unhealthy, high-calorie junk, unwittingly upping their overall calorie intake. > [@](#): > > so unless that study made sure the monkeys had the same sleeping patterns, it can’t be a fair test. For example if one monkey sleeps at night and eats during the day, and another eats at night and sleeps during the day, it’s not surprising there would be no difference in weight gain between them. It’s not the time on the clock that matters, it’s the time of eating in relation to the time of sleeping, and it doesn’t appear that the researchers took that into account. Possibly, though I’d like to see actual cites of those studies that WebMD mentioned in passing (so that they’re not just mentioning anecdotal evidence and their own unsupported theory). ---
**Author:** ![Emerald\_Hawk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e495f1/32.png) [@Emerald\_Hawk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emerald_Hawk)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2005, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/9 "2005-07-26T20:46:12Z")
> [@MikeS](#): > > People who have problems with gastric reflux disease (chronic heartburn, essentially) are told not to eat for an hour or two before going to sleep, the logic being that acid is more likely to escape the stomach & damage the esophagus when you’re lying down than when you’re sitting or standing upright. I’m going to second this with a [cite](http://www.mayoclinic.org/gerd/gerdcontrol.html) and also a WAG: This advice may be valid even for the occasional heartburn sufferer. Since most people suffer from heartburn at some point in their life, this advice could potentially apply to most people. ---
**Author:** ![FlightlessBird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/cdc98d/32.png) [@FlightlessBird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlightlessBird)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2005, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/10 "2005-07-26T21:55:04Z")
In terms of weight loss, I think this is a myth. As we all know, weight loss/weight gain is dependant on 2 factors: calories taken in, and calories burned. Over a longer period of time, it won’t matter when you do either activity. IANAD but the chemistry set that is the human body takes into account all activities used to burn calories including sleep. I think the real question becomes: Does the energy it takes to get calories from fat differ significantly from getting calories from food in your stomach? ---
**Author:** ![Surreal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@Surreal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surreal)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2011, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/11 "2011-06-13T16:10:10Z")
Here’s a recent study that supports the notion that eating late at night can produce excess weight gain, but the reasons for this remain unclear: > **[Role of sleep timing in caloric intake and BMI - PubMed](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21527892/)** > > Sleep duration has been linked to obesity and there is also an emerging literature in animals demonstrating a relationship between the timing of feeding and weight regulation. However, there is a paucity of research evaluating timing of sleep and... > [@](#): > > Sleep duration has been linked to obesity and there is also an emerging literature in animals demonstrating a relationship between the timing of feeding and weight regulation. However, there is a paucity of research evaluating timing of sleep and feeding on weight regulation in humans. The goal of this study was to evaluate the role of sleep timing in dietary patterns and BMI. Participants included 52 (25 females) volunteers who completed 7 days of wrist actigraphy and food logs. Fifty-six percent were “normal sleepers” (midpoint of \<5:30 AM) and 44% were “late sleepers” (midpoint of sleep ≥5:30 AM). Late sleepers had shorter sleep duration, later sleep onset and sleep offset and meal times. Late sleepers consumed more calories at dinner and after 8:00 PM, had higher fast food, full-calorie soda and lower fruit and vegetable consumption. Higher BMI was associated with shorter sleep duration, later sleep timing, caloric consumption after 8:00 PM, and fast food meals. In multivariate models, sleep timing was independently associated with calories consumed after 8:00 PM and fruit and vegetable consumption but did not predict BMI after controlling for sleep duration. \*\*Calories consumed after 8:00 PM predicted BMI after controlling for sleep timing and duration. These findings indicate that caloric intake after 8:00 PM may increase the risk of obesity, independent of sleep timing and duration. \*\*Future studies should investigate the biological and social mechanisms linking timing of sleep and feeding in order to develop novel time-based interventions for weight management. Yet another blow to the silly “a calorie is a calorie” belief. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2011, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/12 "2011-06-13T16:13:52Z")
Sorry to disagree I eat basically one meal a day and have a great body. It IS calories in and calories out. All this metabolism stuff only refers to tiny amounts. Did you notice the part in the study quoted > [@](#): > > These findings indicate that caloric intake after 8:00 PM may increase the risk of obesity, independent of sleep timing and duration MAY?? What does that mean. MAY can also mean MAY NOT. This isn’t a study it’s a guess. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2011, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/13 "2011-06-13T16:25:40Z")
> [@Markxxx](#): > > MAY?? What does that mean. MAY can also mean MAY NOT. This isn’t a study it’s a guess. Welcome to reading and understanding scientific research, **Markxxx**. Legitimate studies very rarely (if ever) use definitive words like “must” or “will”, because you virtually never see results in a study which are 100% predictive and definitive. If you see a correlation, but it’s not 100% (and it pretty much never is), you use words like “may”. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2011, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/14 "2011-06-13T16:39:36Z")
> [@Surreal](#): > > Here’s a recent study that supports the notion that eating late at night can produce excess weight gain, but the reasons for this remain unclear… > Yet another blow to the silly “a calorie is a calorie” belief. But it sounds like they did not control for the total number of calories consumed, or the makeup of the diet. > [@](#): > > Late sleepers consumed more calories at dinner and after 8:00 PM, had higher fast food, full-calorie soda and lower fruit and vegetable consumption. If your calories after 8:00 include a Wendy’s Triple, large fries, and a Frosty, well yeah, you’re going to gain weight. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2011, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/15 "2011-06-13T16:55:42Z")
> [@Emerald\_Hawk](#): > > I’m going to second this with a [cite](http://www.mayoclinic.org/gerd/gerdcontrol.html) . Heck, I’ll third it with personal experience. Waking up at night gasping for breath is really unsettling. ---
**Author:** ![Surreal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@Surreal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surreal)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2011, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/16 "2011-06-13T16:59:58Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > But it sounds like they did not control for the total number of calories consumed, or the makeup of the diet. No need to control for either of those in order to answer the OP’s question. ---
**Author:** ![gp92](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/41988e/32.png) [@gp92](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gp92)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/17 "2011-06-15T12:14:59Z")
> [@Markxxx](#): > > Sorry to disagree I eat basically one meal a day and have a great body. It IS calories in and calories out. All this metabolism stuff only refers to tiny amounts. > > Did you notice the part in the study quoted > > MAY?? What does that mean. MAY can also mean MAY NOT. This isn’t a study it’s a guess. It is to do with what you would eat inbetween your meals, and activity levels. If you eat late you won’tnecessarity be fatter, the same is true if you eat early. Studies tend to use may when something is linked to something else, but not definitvely. For example: People who drink more alcohol have a higher risk of getting lung cancer. This doesn’t mean that alcohol causes lung cancer (and we are pretty sure it doesn’t!), but for example, people who spent more time in pubs were more likely to inhale second hand smoke (before the ban obv). So alcohol conspumption is linked to lunger cancer - if you drink a lot of alcohol you may more likely to get lung cancer. Doesn’t mean you definately will or won’t. Also cancer isn’t just caused by one thing there are genetic factors and other environmental factors. So going back to the eating thing - you can’t define clearly eating late makes you overweight \> it is more complex than that! I hope this makes sense and hasn’t been really boring! ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/18 "2011-06-15T13:10:26Z")
Never been to Spain, but I’ve heard it’s the custom to have dinner late at night there. Is **Nava** in the house? > [@](#): > > [In Spain](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tapas#Spain),[[sup]cite[/sup]](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tapas#cite_note-2) dinner is usually served between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. (sometimes as late as 12 midnight), leaving significant time between work and dinner. Therefore, Spaniards often go “bar hopping” (Spanish: _Ir de tapas_) and eat tapas in the time between finishing work and having dinner. Think—How many fat Spaniards have you [ever seen](http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&sugexp=ldymls&xhr=t&q=spaniards&cp=9&safe=off&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.&biw=1066&bih=544&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=isch&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi)? (Don’t give Sancho Panza as a cite; he’s fictional.) I’m envisioning a sequel to _French Women Don’t Get Fat_—title it something like… _Spanish Women Don’t Get Fat Either, and They Even Have Dinner Late at Night! Ha! Bet You Can’t Top That, France!_ ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/19 "2011-06-15T18:00:07Z")
> [@Johanna](#): > > … I’m envisioning a sequel to _French Women Don’t Get Fat_—title it something like… _Spanish Women Don’t Get Fat Either, and They Even Have Dinner Late at Night! Ha! Bet You Can’t Top That, France!_ 😛 OP, I tend to nibble and graze through the day (6 small meals? snacks? dunno) and then one bigger meal just about right before I go to bed. It’s healthy _for me_ because I a) have a fast-ish metabolism, and b) can’t eat what most Americans consider “a big meal” in one sitting. Some might say those two things alone are healthy. Anyway … I’m a light sleeper, and if I wake up early too hungry to fall back asleep, I have to get up and feed myself and mess up my whole sleep schedule for that next day. So, this works for me. Also: I know your metabolism drops while you sleep, and that digestion is a metabolically-demanding task, but doesn’t the fact that your blood isn’t supporting a lot of limb movement mean more of it is available for your gut? The whole meme about not digesting during sleep always made me go :dubious: because I generally wake up anywhere from hungry to famished. (And, not to get too TMI, but I’ve occasionally had cause to hit “rewind” on my stomach first thing in the morning, and, trust me, dinner ain’t in there anymore.) ---
**Author:** ![Critical1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3e96dc/32.png) [@Critical1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Critical1)\ **Post date:** [June 15, 2011, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210/20 "2011-06-15T19:31:40Z")
I love the dont eat after 8 nonsense…what time do these people go to bed? I usually dont hit the sack until 2am, going 6 hours without eating then trying to sleep would piss me off on a regular basis. its just as absurd as the idea that every person needs 8 8oz glasses of water per day to not die. how is it possible that a 100lb girl needs as much water as my 225lb self needs? bad science. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-eating-late-at-night-really-bad-for-you/314210.md?page=2)