There are going to be many carb posts on topics such as, their benefit/what they do for your body, what really happens regarding your weight when you cut out carbs, specific low carb diets, the GI index and if it matters, my carbs of choice, why I hate low carb diets, etc, of course debunking the myths and easing people’s fear (which runs rampant) of the macronutrient.
No carbs after 7 pm, no carbs after 4 pm, carbs only pre- and/or post-workout, carbs only in the morning, low carb diets, very low carb diets, Atkins, keto, carb cycling. We are bombarded with this info on a daily basis, and will explore the truth.
For now we are just looking at a quick study that is too new to even be in the online journal (so I only have the abstract) that shows that not only can carbs be eaten at night, but they also are advantageous later in the day, at least among obese individuals.
The study put 78 obese (their BMI’s were greater than 30) police officers into two groups, one eating carbs mostly at dinner, and the other, a steady weight loss diet who spread their carbs throughout the day for 180 days. Both groups had a low calorie diet, although exactly calories and the extent of the deficit were not mentioned. They evaluated “anthropometric, hunger/satiety, biochemical, and inflammatory parameters,” as well as hormonal levels, by testing blood and asking about hunger scores.
The group who ate carbs mainly at dinner were less hungry, lost more weight and had lower body fat levels, had lower abdominal circumferences, and improved bloodwork, including insulin and glucose levels, than the control group.
The main conclusions were that this sort of diet might be advantageous for those suffering from obesity, insulin resistance, and/or hormonal issues.
It is important to realize that the individuals in this study were obese, we don’t know how compliant both groups were to carb timing or caloric intake, we don't know if they were working out and, if so, if they were working out the same amount (although fat loss mainly is about diet), we don’t know their caloric intake and we don’t know their total or nightly carb intake. I am sure the actual study fleshes this information out more.
Can this be generalized to non-obese people who are dieting or bodybuilders who are cutting? I don’t know. But I do not think eating carbs at night is necessary to have these results, but it is refreshing to see a non-negative study towards eating carbs at night. And that there might be beneficial effects, at least for a certain subgroup, is pretty cool, although I still have many doubts.
In any case, I think the no carbs at night rule is bs, and is similar to those that believe you must have casein (in the form of protein powder, cottage cheese, etc) before bed, a common belief held by bodybuilders.
We have so many myths regarding food, meal timing, etc to dispel. We’ll get there!
I am breaking my own rule here, as I said I would never post my cals or macro’s, but, fyi, my meal 5, eaten right before bed, contains 73 g carbs. Meal 4 is the one I eat around dinner time, when the experimental group ate most of their carbs, and contains soba noodles, so in total, I eat a lot of carbs at night (and in all other meals) and am as happy as a clam and have seen no adverse effects, not that I was expecting any.
I never knew this! And for me to not see a science study is like the sun not shining - LOL! Love this Randi! Thank you.
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