Intermittent fasting may put you at risk of developing Type 2 diabetes: Study

If you often miss your breakfast, the findings of a new study might change your approach. As per a new study, people who get up early do not just stay healthy but also have better blood sugar levels as compared to their counterparts who do not wake up early and do not eat their breakfast in time.

The study was presented at ENDO 2021, a virtual conference from The Endocrine Society held earlier this year in March. The findings of the study showed that eating early in the morning hours is linked to lower insulin resistance and a lower risk of type 2 diabetes.

The lead researcher of the study from Northwestern University in Chicago revealed how researchers observed that people who started eating earlier in the day have less insulin resistance and lower blood sugar. The results were regardless of whether the individuals restricted their food intake to 10 hours or less than 10 hours in a day.

To draw patterns between meal timings and levels of blood sugar and insulin, the team of researchers analysed data derived from 10,575 adult Americans from a national survey on health and nutrition. It was found that intermittent fasting or eating during a 10-hour window or less each day was linked to higher insulin resistance.

In short, people who fasted were less responsive to insulin and this resistance becomes a risk factor for developing type-2 diabetes.

The findings of this study are in contrast with some earlier studies that claimed fasting might improve insulin sensitivity and control an individual's blood sugar levels. But regardless of whether the person fasted or not, people who ate their first meal before 8:30 am had lower levels of insulin resistance.

The study shows that the timing of eating is more strongly associated with metabolic measures than duration.