NEW DELHI: Late-night snacking — especially on rich, carb-heavy comfort food — can feel like one of life’s simplest pleasures. You wrap up your meal, feel satisfyingly full, and drift off to bed shortly after. However, new research published in early February suggests that eating too close to bedtime may negatively affect your health. Experts say adjusting the timing of your last meal could make a measurable difference.
When Should You Eat Your Last Meal?
The study, published in Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology, examined how meal timing before bed influences cardiovascular and metabolic health. Researchers found that eating your final meal at least three hours before bedtime may help lower blood pressure, reduce heart rate, and improve blood glucose control.
The research team at Northwestern University focused on 39 adults between the ages of 36 and 75 who were classified as overweight or obese. While generally healthy, these participants were considered at risk for cardiometabolic conditions such as heart disease and type 2 diabetes. They were randomly assigned to one of two groups for at least six weeks, with most continuing for about 7.5 weeks to accommodate daily schedules.
Participants in the control group fasted for 11 to 13 hours between dinner and breakfast the next day, maintaining their usual nighttime eating patterns. The experimental group, however, fasted for 13 to 16 hours — effectively finishing dinner about three hours earlier than the control group.
Aside from dimming lights three hours before bed, participants were not required to alter their sleep habits or food choices. The study focused solely on timing, not calorie restriction or dietary composition. Researchers monitored heart rate and blood pressure every 30 minutes from late afternoon until participants woke up the following morning.
Earlier Dinners Show Cardiometabolic Benefits
The findings were notable. Those in the fasting group demonstrated healthier nighttime blood pressure and heart rate levels, along with improved glucose regulation — meaning more stable blood sugar levels.
Dr. Daniela Grimaldi, a research associate professor of neurology in the division of sleep medicine at Feinberg School of Medicine and one of the study’s authors, described the results as striking. She noted that a relatively simple adjustment in meal timing improved nighttime autonomic balance — referring to the autonomic nervous system that regulates essential functions like breathing and digestion — along with blood pressure, heart rate control, and morning glucose metabolism. Importantly, these improvements occurred without weight loss or calorie restriction.
Dr. Kumar Sarkar, a cardiologist at Northwell Health who was not involved in the study, explained why the timing matters. “The two to three hours before sleep are a critical transition period,” he said. During this window, melatonin levels rise, sympathetic nervous system activity declines, and metabolic rates slow. Eating during this phase forces the body to focus on digestion just as it is preparing for sleep.
Digesting a late meal at night can stimulate gut motility and insulin secretion, processes that may disrupt sleep and metabolic stability. By allowing the body to complete digestion earlier, individuals may support both sleep quality and cardiometabolic health.
With aging populations and rising rates of cardiovascular disease, kidney disease, and diabetes, time-restricted eating has drawn growing public interest. Grimaldi emphasized that the study aimed to provide scientific evidence for optimizing meal timing by aligning it with sleep patterns — an essential biological process that significantly affects metabolic health.
Notably, adherence to the fasting protocol was high, with about 90 percent of participants in the experimental group successfully maintaining the schedule. This suggests that the approach is practical and sustainable for many people.
For instance, someone who goes to bed at 10 p.m. might aim to finish dinner by 7 p.m. and maintain that routine consistently to observe potential benefits.
Study Limitations
The researchers acknowledged several limitations. The majority of participants were female, which may influence how the findings apply to men, given known differences in metabolism, autonomic function, and circadian rhythms between sexes. Additionally, the relatively small sample size and the focus on overweight and obese individuals limit how broadly the results can be generalized.
Even so, Dr. Sarkar described the improvements in nighttime heart rate, blood pressure, and cortisol levels as compelling, suggesting that meal timing could be an accessible strategy for improving overall cardiometabolic health.
While further research with larger and more diverse populations is needed, the study reinforces a simple takeaway: finishing dinner earlier in the evening may help support better heart health, blood sugar control, and sleep quality — without requiring changes to what you eat, only when you eat it.