Chrononutrition and Supplement Timing in Metabolic Health and Healthy Aging: A Review

Abstract:

Chrononutrition is an emerging discipline that investigates how a person's nutritional intake, when and how often, affects a person's circadian rhythm and how this affects metabolism, cardiometabolic health, and healthy aging. There is current evidence that both the type of food we eat and the time we eat it may influence glucose regulation, lipid metabolism, hormone balance, energy expenditure and body weight, all independent of calorie intake. Obesity, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and accelerated metabolic aging are all risks when eating times are out of sync with the circadian clock, due to late-night eating, irregular meal timing or shift work or disturbed sleep. Circadian eating patterns, such as eating one's breakfast, earlier meal timing, early time-restricted feeding, and decreased intake of late-night foods, on the other hand, have been correlated with better glycemic control, healthier lipid profiles, better blood pressure control, and better energy balance. The time of macronutrient consumption also matters, as earlier-in-the-day carbohydrate and total energy intake resulted in more positive metabolic outcomes. Moreover, the timing of nutrient supplementation can affect their absorption and bioavailability, especially for fat-soluble vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. From a broader perspective, chrononutrition could play a role in maintaining good health and longevity by promoting better sleep, muscle health, metabolic adaptability, and overall physiological resilience. But further, longer term clinical trials are required to make clear, evidence-based recommendations for various populations.