You are when you eat

A CARB CURFEW AFTER 5pm

ADVOCATES: JOANNA HALL, AUTHOR OF CARB CURFEW, DIDO AND THE ENGLAND RUGBY TEAM

There's an ideal time to eat- it's just a pity the experts can't agree on what that time is. Here's a guide to some of the clock watching approaches.

Nutritionist Joanna Hall says the approach of banning carbohydrates in the evening creates a "kilojoule gap" between the number of kilojoules consumed and the number burnt off. In addition, eating more protein will help you to stay fuller for longer, she says.
"Evenings are when most people munch on high-fat foods such as cakes and biscuits, because they are bored or tired," says Louise Sutton, a dietitian and principal lecturer in sport and exercise nutrition at Leeds Metropolitan University in the UK. "So this is one way of stopping that." Experts are sceptical, as there is no scientific evidence to support the claims, but they agree that if it helps to reduce night-time nibbles, it's a good thing.

EAT ALL YOU CAN BETWEEN 4pm and 7pm

ADVOCATES OF SCIPPING MEALS: DR MARK MATTSON, CHIEF OF THE LABORATORY OF NEUROSCIENCES AT THE US NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON AGEING, AND THE AUTHORS OF VARIOUS SO CALLED "WARRIOR DIETS"

Dr Mattson has run several studies to investigate how meal frequency affects health. In one still being analysed, participants were allowed to eat only within a 3 hour timeslot, at the end of their working day.
"Our basic metabolism was set up when we were hunter-gatherers," says Mattson. "The pattern would have been a mixture of feast and famine. We not only get much less exercise than our distant ancestors, but having a regular food supply where we may overeat, as opposed to an intermittent one, may prove almost damaging." Frankie Phillips a spokeswoman for the British Dietetic Association disagrees with the feast/famine theory. "It is quite unrealistic to think that people could adopt this approach," she says. "Avoiding food until 4pm leaves you prone to unhealthy snacking. And plenty of studies have shown that if you are well nourished and eat regularly through the day, it has benefits for mental performance, as well as the waistline."

THREE SQUARE MEALS A DAY

ADVOCATES ANGLO-AUSTRALIAN GRANDPARENTS

Three cooked meals a day was pretty much the normal approach to eating in the 1940's and earlier. All meals were pretty substantial and the average kilojoule intake may be higher than it is today, but people were a lot more active. Very few would scip breakfast, lunch or dinner, and snacking between meals was unheard of. Experts say there is nothing wrong with this approach, other than it is simply not practical for most modern lifestyles.

EAT YOUR MAIN MEAL AFTER 9pm

ADVOCATES: THE SPANISH, FRENCH AND ITALIANS

This is not a faddish diet, but a lifestyle habit. The evening meal, the main meal of the day is often eaten much later than 9pm in Spain, which is one reason why snacking in tapas bars is so popular - as means of starving off hunger as much as anything else. However, Louise Sutton says the approach is not recommended unless you are used to it. "Going to bed on a full stomach can raise the risk of indigestion and heartburn," she says. "It doesn't suit everyone."

FAST BEFORE NOON

ADVOCATES: CLAUDIA SCHIFFER

Eating very little before midday is how Schiffer maintains her supermodel shape. "I keep my daily kilojoule count down by eating nothing but fruit and vegetables before noon," she says. Skipping breakfast is a growing trend. A report by the World Health Organisation showed that in the UK, for instance, around 60% of girls and 66% boys no longer eat morning meals. But is it healthy?
"Definitely not," says Sutton. Eating fruit in the morning is fine, but studies show if you eat nothing, you will make up for it by consuming more high-kilojoule foods later."

EAT EVERY THREE HOURS

ADVOCATES: US PERSONAL TRAINER JORGE CRUISE, AUTHOR OF THE 3 HOUR DIET

Cruise believes that eating at three hour intervals "stimulates the body to loose weight", whereas spacing out meals more than that "sends the body into starvation mode and forces it to cling to stored fat".
The Vitaline diet follows the same principals: it advises eating a small meal every three hours, but nibbling on a tiny piece of protein or carbohydrate every 15 minutes to boost the metabolism.
While those strict timings are questionable, there is evidence that eating mini meals is healthy. Professor Andrew Prentice of the UK Medical Research Councils international nutrition group says that "little and often" is good: "Metabolically, it looks as though regular nibbling is a good way to do things," he says. "It puts less strain on the body if you are not taking in too much food all at once."

BREAKFAST LIKE A KING

ADVOCATES: LEADING NUTRITIONISTS AND SCIENTISTS

Breakfast kick starts your metabolism, which becomes sluggish overnight. It should be the most important meal of the day, and there is plenty of research to back up this claim. Last year, the Maryland Medical Research Institute found that girls who ate any breakfast cereal were slimmer than those who didn't. Other studies have shown that cereal eaters snack less on high-kilojoule foods throughout the day. "Not eating breakfast is really the worst thing you can do," says Bruce Barton, one of the experts who headed the Maryland study.

EAT ONE DAY, STARVE THE NEXT

ADVOCATES: A GROWING NUMBER OF SCIENTISTS

"Intermittent feeding schedules", which lead to the consumption of one third fewer kilojoules overall, have long been shown to increase the health and lifespan of rats. Now, some experts are beginning to think the approach might be beneficial for humans, too. American studies by Dr Mattson and his colleagues at the National Institute on Ageing showed that animals who were made to fast for a day but allowed to eat as much as they wanted the next not only lost weight, but had improved blood pressure and markers for diabetes.
However Dr James Stubbs of the Rowett Research Institute in Aberdeen says, "Even if intermittent feeding did promote weight loss to begin with, the body would adapt and weight would soon go up again."

THE RIGHT FOOD AT THE RIGHT TIME

Chronobiologists have studied the body's circadian rhythms and identified ideal time slots for eating and exercising.

7-8 am Eat breakfast
It is best to eat after some light, early-morning stretching or yoga.

10am Have a snack
The body uses 20% of the brains available glucose by around this time, so a low fat carbohydrate snack, such as a banana, bagel or sports energy bar is needed to top up levels.

1pm Eat lunch
Energy levels are naturally running low at this time. Leave lunch any later and you are more likely to consume more kilojoules.

2-3pm Have a snack
Glucose levels plummet in a post-lunch dip. Some cashew nuts, plain popcorn, or dried or fresh fruit will get you back on track.

4-6 Do a workout
Muscle temperature and other fitness parameters reach a peak around now.

5-7pm Eat an evening meal
After this time, we tend to need more food to feel full. Eating now also allows time for food to be fully digested before going to bed.

7-9 Eat a bedtime snack
Choose cottage cheese, a slice of Turkey or a banana, all of which contain the amino acid tryptophan - a precursor to a good nights sleep