Researchers at NTNU recently published an article about obesity and eating patterns, based on experiments done on rats.

Fifty rats were part of the study and were divided into two groups. One group had access to a high–fat diet throughout the day, while the second group only had access to the same high–fat diet nine hours a day, for five days a week. On the other two days of the week, the restricted group could also eat as much as and whenever they wanted.

For people, this regimen “would mean eating breakfast, lunch and an early dinner, but nothing in the evening,” says PhD candidate Magnus Kringstad Olsen. “Or skip breakfast, and eat lunch, dinner and some evening fare. On weekends you could eat whenever and whatever you want,” he adds.

Olsen has been part of a research group for experimental surgery in NTNU’s Department of Cancer Research and Molecular Medicine, under the leadership of Professor Duan Chen.

Many people who are overweight eat at night. We have an internal clock that is set differently for daytime and night–time. The body handles food better during the day than at night.

Many people who are overweight eat at night. We have an internal clock that is set differently for daytime and night–time. The body handles food better during the day than at night.

This time restriction allows you to eat during the hours when your body is active and not at night, when most of us are passive. According to Olsen, what time of day we eat makes a big difference.

“We have an internal clock that is set differently for daytime and nighttime. The body handles food better during the day than at night. Many people who are overweight eat at night,” he says.

The results from their study show that fasting for about 15 hours a day has a major influence on preventing obesity. “We found that rats, particularly young rats that have had high–fat diet but were on the fasting regimen gained weight and developed obesity much more slowly than the rats that ate a high–fat diet whenever they wanted to all week long. The rats that were allowed to eat whenever they wanted gained a lot of weight. People who don’t eat a diet that is as rich in fat as the high–fat diet that the rats ate will probably see an even greater effect,” says Olsen.