The myth about harmful effects of eating after six in the evening has been debunked

The opinion that eating after six in the evening is harmful to health has no scientific confirmation. The main rule is to finish dinner no later than three hours before sleep.

As reported by BAKU.WS, this was stated to "Izvestia" by Russian therapist Ekaterina Ladygina.

"After six, you can and should eat. It's about the fact that for normal digestion, it's advisable to have your last meal no later than three hours before sleep. This is important. But, again, no two organisms are identical, so recommendations on eating patterns are often individual in nature," the specialist emphasized.

Ladygina explained that people with impaired glucose tolerance may experience night awakenings due to falling blood sugar levels, so in such cases a light snack before bed - one or two boiled eggs or a handful of nuts - is beneficial. In addition, women during breastfeeding can add a meal before bed or even at night so that milk remains nutritious and the baby sleeps peacefully.

Also for some people over 40, the expert added, intermittent fasting may be beneficial if there are no contraindications. It is important to consider individual characteristics of the body, as with Gilbert's syndrome, type I diabetes, or after gallbladder removal, long breaks between meals can be dangerous.

"It's better to have dinner three hours before sleep. It should be protein-based, with carbohydrates in the form of non-starchy vegetables: a piece of fish with a green salad, a piece of white meat with stewed vegetables, or something similar. The total portion should be up to 350g by stomach volume," noted Ladygina.

When consuming sweets or fast food, it's better to take a walk so that the energy obtained from glucose doesn't go into fat storage.