The late doctor recommended a simple change
Dr Michael Mosley was an advocate of time-restricted eating and a healthy diet
If you are finding it tough to manage your weight and keep up with demanding diets, then you are certainly not in the minority.
Thousands of people across the country find maintaining a healthy size a constant uphill struggle. However, the late Dr Michael Mosley changed the lives of millions with his revolutionary, accessible approach to health.
While the world-renowned specialist passed away in 2024, his expertise continues to provide a vital roadmap for those looking to shed pounds and boost their overall wellbeing.
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For anyone who finds traditional calorie-counting a chore, the doctor highlighted one remarkably simple change that can lead to weight loss without you even noticing.
It isn’t about what you are eating, but when you are eating it. Dr Mosley was the mastermind behind several famous eating regimes, including The New 5:2 and The Very Fast 800. But he also championed one universal adjustment that anyone can try: moving your final meal of the day to an earlier time slot.
He previously admitted that his own hectic schedule as a busy dad often meant he wouldn’t sit down for dinner until “well after 9pm.”
“More recently, we’ve made an effort to start eating our dinner by 7.30pm, as well as avoiding too many late-night snacks,” he previously explained.
He added that the shift was “good for the waistline,” and pointed to research conducted by the University of Nottingham in partnership with Tehran University of Medical Sciences.
The study followed 82 healthy but overweight women over a 12-week period. While one group stuck to their usual habits, the other half were asked to finish their evening meal by 7.30pm at the latest, ChronicleLive reports.
By the end of the three months, both groups had lost weight—but the results for the “early eaters” were significantly better. Those who finished dinner earlier lost an average of 15lb, compared to less than 11lb for the late-night group.
Effectively, by simply adjusting the clock, the early diners lost an extra 4lb and saw an extra inch disappear from their waistlines. They also saw better improvements in their blood fats and cholesterol levels.
Dr Mosley was quick to clarify that this wasn’t because the late-night group was eating more; both groups consumed roughly the same number of calories. Instead, experts believe that late-night eating wreaks havoc on the genes that control our internal body clock (circadian rhythm), which can increase the risk of type 2 diabetes and obesity.
Writing in his Daily Mail column, the doctor highlighted further evidence from Johns Hopkins University. Their study found that volunteers who ate dinner within an hour of going to bed burnt 10% less fat overnight compared to those who stopped three hours before sleep.
He warned that our bodies simply aren’t designed to process heavy loads of food late at night, noting that a midnight snack will have a worse impact than the exact same food eaten during the day.