Eating meals early could reduce cardiovascular risk

Freepik A study led by scientists from INRAE, the Barcelona Institute for Global Health, Inserm, and the Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, has revealed that the time at which we eat could influence our risk of developing cardiovascular disease. This study, carried out on a sample of over 100,000 people from the NutriNet-Santé cohort, followed between 2009 and 2022, suggests that eating a late first or last meal is associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease. It also appears that a longer night-time fasting duration is associated with a reduced risk of cerebrovascular disease such as stroke. The findings, published in Nature Communications , suggest the importance of daily meal timing and rhythm in reducing cardiovascular disease risk. Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in the world according to the Global Burden of Disease study, with 18.6 million annual deaths in 2019, of which around 7.9 are attributable to diet. This means that diet plays a major role in the development and progression of these diseases. The modern lifestyle of Western societies has led to specific eating habits such as eating dinner late or skipping breakfast.