Randomized controlled trial for time-restricted eating in overweight and obese young adults

Abstract

Time-restricted eating (TRE) is known to improve metabolic health, whereas very few studies have compared the effects of early and late TRE (eTRE and lTRE) on metabolic health. Overweight and obese young adults were randomized to 6-h eTRE (eating from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m.) (n = 21), 6-h lTRE (eating from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m.) (n = 20), or a control group (<i>ad libitum</i> intake in a day) (n = 19). After 8 weeks, 6-h eTRE and lTRE produced comparable body weight loss compared with controls. Compared with control, 6-h eTRE reduced systolic blood pressure, mean glucose, fasting insulin, insulin resistance, leptin, and thyroid axis activity, whereas lTRE only reduced leptin. These findings shed light on the promise of 6-h eTRE and lTRE for weight loss. Larger studies are needed to assess the promise of eTRE to yield better thyroid axis modulation and overall cardiometabolic health improvement.