About the benefits of an early dinner

A late dinner can increase the risk of two types of cancer

Spanish researchers have concluded that the habit of eating dinner less than two hours before bedtime may be associated with an increased risk of developing breast and prostate cancer. The work of Kogevinas et al. Effect of mistimed eating patterns on breast and prostate cancer risk (MCC‐Spain Study) published in the International Journal of Cancer.

Once again, scientists say that the tendency to eat at night can harm health. Previously, researchers have noted that this type of nutrition causes laboratory mice to malfunction in the production of proteins associated with the processes of memorization and learning.

The authors of the new work studied the data of the MCC‐Spain study on the influence of genetic and environmental factors on the risk of developing tumors of various organs. The new study used data on 1,205 patients with breast cancer and 621 patients with prostate cancer. The control group included 1,321 women and 872 men without cancer. It should be noted that the participants of the control group never worked the night shift. All the volunteers answered questions about what kind of sleep regime they adhere to and when they eat. Scientists assessed which of the seven chronotypes each respondent belongs to using the Munich Questionnaire.

Researchers have established: those who ate at least two hours before bedtime had a 16% lower risk of developing breast cancer and prostate cancer by 26% compared to those who went to bed immediately after dinner. This effect was most pronounced in "larks" and in those who adhered to standard recommendations for cancer prevention – for example, maintained a healthy body weight and did not abuse alcohol.

Oncological diseases of the breast and prostate are often associated with the activity of various hormones. It is known that fluctuations in the concentration of many hormones depend on the circadian (diurnal) rhythms of the body. According to scientists, late dinners are one of the reasons that can lead to disruptions of circadian rhythms. This and other hypotheses have yet to be tested. Studies with the participation of residents of other countries will help to do this: in Spain, the habit of eating relatively late is widespread.

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