Eat After 7pm, Risk Heart Attack-Experts Warn

Posted on September 3, 2016
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Millions of Brits are fuelling their risk of heart attacks by eating dinner after 7pm, experts have warned.
They spoke out in the wake of new research reported at the world’s biggest heart conference.
More than 500 people a day end up in hospital after suffering a heart attack every single day in the UK.
Now for the first time a study has revealed a link between eating late and a lethal form of high blood pressure which can trigger heart attacks.
Researchers assessed more than 700 adults aged 18 to 65 with high blood pressure, to see what difference diet and eating times made to their health.
One in four people in the UK have high blood pressure.
The study examined the types of foods eaten, levels of salt consumed, whether breakfast was eaten regularly and timing of evening meals.
It found eating dinner late had the biggest single impact on overnight blood pressure.
Incredibly, having dinner less than two hours before bed time did more damage than the long-established risk of having a high salt diet, the study found.
Experts said the study suggested that when people eat could be just as important as what they eat.
A healthy diet meant eating a good breakfast and lunch, but limiting the last meal of the day to a light meal, ideally no later than 7pm, researchers said.
One in four Brits suffers from high blood pressure – known as hypertension – which is one of the key risks for heart disease.
In 40% of cases, blood pressure fails to drop properly overnight, sharply increasing the chance of heart attacks.
The study found that those who eat dinner late are much more likely to suffer from this “non-dipper hypertension” – the lethal form of high blood pressure where pressure fails to drop properly overnight.
In total 24% of those who ate dinner within two hours of going to bed suffered from blood pressure which did not drop sufficiently overnight, compared with 14% of those who ate their evening meal earlier.
Experts said that eating late leaves your body on “high alert”, encouraging the production of stress hormones, such as adrenaline, while it might also disrupt the circadian rhythms.
The research is the world’s first into the links between late night eating and “non-dipper hypertension”.
The Turkish study found those who skipped breakfast were also more likely to fail to see an overnight dip in pressure.
But this had less impact than late night eating. This might be explained by the fact those who ate late night were more likely to skip breakfast, researchers said.
Dr Ebru Özpelit, associate professor of cardiology at Dokuz Eylül University, Izmir, said modern life was encouraging people into “erratic”eating habits which could prove deadly.
Speaking at the annual congress of the European Society of Cardiology in Rome, she said: “Normally at night your body is getting ready for sleep but not if you are eating late.
“If we eat late at night, the body essentially remains on high alert as during the day, rather than relaxing for sleep and stress hormones are secreted causing blood pressure not to decrease during sleep which should normally happen.”
She added: “We must define the ideal frequency and timing of meals because how we eat may be as important as what we eat.
“Eating breakfast is important, we should have a strong breakfast, we shouldn’t skip lunch. We must have a small dinner and it mustn’t be later than 7pm in the evening.”
Blood pressure is supposed to drop by at least 10% at night, to allow the body to rest and recover from the day. If it remains raised, it significantly boosts your risk of heart disease and heart attacks.
Previous studies have linked late night eating to a higher risk of obesity, and to insulin resistance, which can fuel Type 2 diabetes.
And skipping breakfast has been linked with a greater chance of heart disease.
Dr Özpelit said the new study suggested eating late at night had a far greater impact than missing the first meal of the day.
The observational study showed a large overlap between both habits, with 72% of those who ate late at night also skipping breakfast.
But the findings suggested that the late night eating had the main impact, with poor consequences for blood pressure even among those who did eat breakfast.
Researchers said they hoped the results would be confirmed by large population based studies. They also called for more research examining exactly what and when people should eat, to protect their blood pressure.
Professor Peter Weissberg, Medical Director at the British Heart Foundation, said: “It is normal for blood pressure to reduce overnight, even in people with hypertension, more commonly known as high blood pressure.
“However, in some hypertensives their blood pressure remains elevated throughout the night putting them at potentially higher risk of future complications.”
He backed calls for larger studies to examine the risks, adding: “This research suggests that eating a meal late at night may contribute to the failure of their blood pressure to reduce.
“This observation, which needs to be confirmed in further, carefully designed studies, suggests that eating early in the evening may help people to gain better control of their blood pressure.”
-Culled from Daily Mirror

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