Nutrients · 10 authors, 3 centres
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In a large Italian cohort, eating meals later in the day was associated with a higher proportion of ultra-processed foods in the diet and lower diet quality. The study found a cross-sectional link between late-eating patterns and poorer dietary choices.
Dietary data was collected via a single 24-hour recall and foods were categorized using the NOVA classification. Participants were classified as early or late eaters based on median timing for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Late eating was also inversely associated with Mediterranean Diet adherence (β = −0.07) and directly associated with a poorer dietary quality index (β = 0.10). The associations were generally consistent across age groups and sexes. A key limitation is the cross-sectional design, which precludes determining causality. The findings suggest that meal timing patterns may be linked to dietary choices with different levels of processing, which could be a factor in the cardiometabolic health effects previously associated with late eating.
