Flanagan Alan
Department of Nutritional Sciences, Faculty of Health and Medical Science, University of Surrey, Guildford, SurreyGU2 7XH, UK.
Section of Chronobiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Science, University of Surrey, Guildford, SurreyGU2 7XH, UK.
Proc Nutr Soc. 2025 Jan 10:1-9. doi: 10.1017/S0029665124007547.
The potential influence of the timing of eating on body weight regulation in humans has attracted substantial research interest. This review aims to critically evaluate the evidence on timed eating for weight loss, considering energetic and behavioural components of the timing of eating in humans. It has been hypothesised that timed eating interventions may alter energy balance in favour of weight loss by enhancing energy expenditure, specifically the thermic effect of food. This energetic effect has been suggested to explain greater weight loss which has been observed with certain timed eating interventions, despite comparable self-reported energy intakes to control diets. However, timed eating interventions have little impact on total daily energy expenditure, and the apparent effect of time of day on the thermic effect of food largely represents an artefact of measurement methods that fail to account for underlying circadian variation in RMR. Differences in weight loss observed in free-living interventions are more likely explainable by real differences in energy intake, notwithstanding similar self-reported energy intakes. In addition, the energetic focus tends to overlook the role of behavioural factors influencing the timing of eating, such as appetite regulation chronotype-environment interactions, which may influence energy intake under free-living conditions. Overall, there is scant evidence that timed eating interventions are superior to general energy restriction for weight loss in humans. However, the role of behavioural factors in influencing energy intake may be relevant for adherence to energy-restricted diets, and this aspect remains understudied in human intervention trials.
进食时间对人体体重调节的潜在影响已引起了大量的研究兴趣。本综述旨在严格评估限时进食对减肥效果的证据，同时考虑人类进食时间的能量和行为因素。有假设认为，限时进食干预可能通过增加能量消耗，特别是食物的热效应，来改变能量平衡，从而有利于减肥。尽管与对照饮食相比，自我报告的能量摄入量相当，但某些限时进食干预措施观察到了更大的体重减轻，这种能量效应被认为可以解释这一现象。然而，限时进食干预对每日总能量消耗几乎没有影响，一天中不同时间对食物热效应的明显影响在很大程度上是测量方法的人为因素造成的，这些方法没有考虑到静息代谢率（RMR）潜在的昼夜变化。在自由生活干预中观察到的体重减轻差异更可能是由能量摄入的实际差异所解释的，尽管自我报告的能量摄入量相似。此外，对能量的关注往往忽略了影响进食时间的行为因素的作用，如食欲调节、昼夜节律类型与环境的相互作用，这些因素可能在自由生活条件下影响能量摄入。总体而言，几乎没有证据表明限时进食干预在人类减肥方面优于一般的能量限制。然而，行为因素在影响能量摄入方面的作用可能与坚持能量限制饮食有关，而这一方面在人体干预试验中仍未得到充分研究。
