In the hustle and bustle of modern life, it can be all too easy to skip a meal or two. Maybe even do it on purpose. A new study suggests that skipping one of the standard three meals a day could have a serious downside.
In a study of 24,011 US adults over the age of 40, eating just one meal a day was generally associated with a higher risk of death. Skipping breakfast was associated with a higher risk of dying from cardiovascular disease (CVD), while skipping lunch or dinner was associated with a higher risk of all-cause mortality, including an increase in CVD risk.
There was even a problem for those who ate all three meals but had them too close together. Eating two consecutive meals within 4.5 hours has also been shown to be associated with an increased risk of all-cause death.
While the study seems to complicate news that suggest Intermittent fasting might be good for youthe data underscores the importance of regular fuel stops for the body.
“Our research has shown that people who eat only one meal a day are more likely to die than those who eat more meals a day,” says epidemiologist Yangbo Sun from the University of Tennessee.
“Based on these findings, we recommend eating at least two to three meals throughout the day.”
Around 30 percent of the study participants regularly ate fewer than three meals a day. According to the data, younger, non-Hispanic black males with less education and lower family incomes were more likely to skip meals.
Skipping meals was also more common among those who smoked more, drank more alcohol, were more insecure, ate less nutritious food, ate more snacks, and had less energy overall.
This study is not comprehensive enough to determine whether skipping meals actually leads to earlier death, except that there is an association worthy of further research. It is possible that other factors are involved, affecting both eating habits and mortality risk.
However, the research team adjusted their findings to account for variations in numerous dietary and lifestyle factors, including smoking, alcohol consumption, physical activity, energy intake, diet quality and food insecurity – and the link was still there.
“Our results are based on observations from public data and do not imply causality,” says epidemiologist Wei Bao from the University of Iowa. “Nonetheless, what we observed makes metabolic sense.”
This “metabolic sense” refers to the way skipping meals at certain intervals usually results in more energy being taken in at once. This can lead to imbalances in the way our body regulates glucose and a deterioration in the metabolic system.
Current statistics suggest that about 59 percent of men and about 63 percent of women in the United States eat three proper meals a day. This is a large segment of the population who are potentially putting themselves at risk by missing breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Of course, there are all sorts of reasons for this — work hours, time pressures, poverty, different diets and fasting approaches — but the team behind the study hopes it will inspire further questioning about the importance of eating regularly.
“Our research provides much-needed evidence of the link between eating behavior and mortality in relation to meal timing and length of daily prandial [meal] Period,” says Bao.
The research was published in Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
