MedPage Today | "In Type 2 diabetes, does meal timing affect heart health?"
MedPage Today interviewed UCLA Fielding's Dr. Liwei Chen, professor in the Department of Epidemiology, about her research into mealtimes and diabetes.
UCLA Fielding's Dr. Liwei Chen, a physician and professor in the Department of Epidemiology, was interviewed by MedPage Today about her research into the timing of meals and diabetes.
"Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is known to increase risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) 2- to 4-fold, but identifying modifiable protective factors may lead to strategies to mitigate the risk. One factor that has been studied and prioritized in the National Institutes of Health strategic plan for nutrition research is meal timing. Glucose tolerance peaks in the morning, declines as the day goes on into the evening, and hits its nadir during the night. That is important because higher postprandial glucose levels are a risk factor for CVD in patients with T2D.
'Our findings suggest that patients with diabetes may want to eat relatively ‘big’ breakfasts and ‘small’ dinners, without increasing the total daily caloric intake to help reduce the risk of death related to cardiovascular disease,' Chen said. 'Again, reducing total daily caloric intake, eating healthy foods, and increasing exercise are important to reduce the CVD risk for patients with diabetes. They should continue to monitor their body weight and try to maintain a healthy weight.' "
