Time-restricted eating is hot at the moment, as many studies show that it has various health benefits. However, the exact reason why it has so many benefits remains unknown. In a new study, scientists at the Salk Institute tried to uncover this mystery on a molecular level.
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As mentioned in the intro, time-restricted eating, also known as intermittent fasting, is currently very popular. Those that participate in intermittent fasting follow meal timing schedules that switch between voluntary fasting and non-fasting over a particular period of time (commonly a day).
A growing body of research shows that time-restricted eating is linked to a number of health benefits, including a longer life expectancy. Nevertheless, it is not exactly known why these benefits occur. Salk institute researchers looked at the molecular level to discover what is happening.
Interestingly, the team found that intermittent fasting influences gene expression in more than 22 parts of the body and brain.
The study
For their research, the scientists looked at two groups of mice. One group had continuous access to food. The other group only had access to food 9 hours a day (de facto intermittent fasting).
After seven weeks, tissue samples from 22 organ groups and the brain were taken at various periods during the day or night to examine their genetic makeup. Interestingly the team found that 70% of genes responded to intermittent fasting.
Gene expression and hormonal balance
According to professor Satchidananda Panda, lead author of the paper, altering the timing of food intake changed gene expression, not only in the liver or gut but also in thousands of genes within the brain.
The researchers discovered that intermittent fasting changed the expression of 40% of the genes in the hypothalamus, pancreas, and adrenal glands. These are organs that play a vital role in hormone regulation.
The body and brain need hormones to coordinate various bodily and mental processes. Hormonal imbalance is linked to a wide range of illnesses, including stress disorders and diabetes. The findings offer new insights into how intermittent fasting could help manage these conditions.
Circadian rhythms
The team also discovered that intermittent fasting aligned the circadian rhythms of several organs.
Professor Satchidananda Panda stated that circadian rhythms can be found in every cell. He and his team uncovered that time-restricted eating synced the circadian rhythms to have two significant waves: one shortly after eating and one during the fasting period. The researchers think that this allows the body to organize various processes.
Future research
In follow-up research, Professor Satchidananda Panda and his team will focus on the effects of time-restricted eating on specific illnesses or systems implicated in their study, such as chronic kidney disease and atherosclerosis, an arterial hardening that frequently precedes heart disease and stroke.
If you are interested in more details about the underlying study of this article, be sure to check out the paper published in the peer-reviewed science journal Cell Metabolism, listed below.
Sources and further reading:
Fasting at irregular intervals linked to a longer life and a better-performing brain (Universal-Sci)
Diurnal transcriptome landscape of a multi-tissue response to time-restricted feeding in mammals (Cell Metabolism)
Eat your vegetables – studies show plant-based diets are good for immunity (Universal-Sci)
Can the MIND diet really lower the risk of developing dementia and improve your brain health? (Universal-Sci)
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