Length of Overnight Fasting and 6-year Weight Change in the Cancer Prevention Study-3.

BACKGROUND: Longer overnight fasting (ONF) is a potential strategy for weight control. Although promising, the evidence from large population-based studies is limited. OBJECTIVES: To examine the association of self-reported ONF duration with 3- and 6-y weight change in the American Cancer Society's Cancer Prevention Study-3 prospective cohort. METHODS: United States adult Cancer Prevention Study-3 participants completed a 24-h validated meal and snack timing and frequency grid (weekday and weekend) in 2015, from which weighted ONF hours were calculated. Participants reported body weight in 2015, 2018, and 2021. Three- and 6-y weight change (kg, and % body weight) were assessed. RESULTS: Among 104,420 mostly female (78.5%) participants aged 52.7 ± 9.5 (standard deviation) y followed for 6 y, a 1-h increase in ONF length was associated with a small but statistically significant reduction in weight gain over 3- and 6-y periods [multivariable-adjusted mean difference in % body weight = -0.02, 95% confidence interval (CI): -0.05, -0.00, P = 0.03 and -0.04, 95% CI: -0.07, -0.01, P = 0.007, respectively]. The mean difference of 6-y % reduction in weight gain was slightly greater among individuals with overweight (-0.05, 95% CI: -0.10, 0.00, P = 0.05) and obesity (-0.06, 95% CI: -0.12, 0.01, P = 0.08) compared with those with healthy body mass index (-0.03, 95% CI:-0.07, 0.01, P = 0.13) or underweight (0.16, 95% CI: -0.04, 0.36, P = 0.13, Pinteraction < 0.0001). Stronger associations were observed among those ≤55 y than 56+ (Pinteraction = 0.01), and those with higher waist circumference (Pinteraction < 0.0001) but not by sex or earlier/later fasting period. CONCLUSIONS: Longer ONF was associated with slightly lower body weight in adult males and females over 6 y that was stronger among those with overweight or obesity, higher waist circumference, and those aged ≤55 y. The magnitude of weight change, although in the hypothesized direction, suggests that prolonged ONF may have modest impact on weight control over time.

A hypothetical intervention of the timing of dietary intake on weight and body composition after initial weight loss.

OBJECTIVE: This study estimated the effect of hypothetical interventions of higher and lower frequency of breakfast and post-dinner snack consumption (breakfast consumption 0-4 vs. 5-7 times/week and post-dinner snack consumption 0-2 vs. 3-7 times/week) on changes in body weight and composition over 18 months after a successful 6-month standard behavioral weight-loss program. METHODS: The study analyzed data from the Innovative Approaches to Diet, Exercise and Activity (IDEA) study. RESULTS: If all participants consumed a breakfast meal 5 to 7 times/week over 18 months, they would have regained 2.95 kg of body weight on average (95% CI: 2.01 to 3.96), which is 0.59 kg (95% CI: -0.86 to -0.32) lower than if all participants consumed breakfast 0 to 4 times/week. If all participants consumed a post-dinner snack 0 to 2 times/week, they would have regained 2.86 kg of body weight on average (95% CI: 0.99 to 5.25), which is 0.83 kg (95% CI: -1.06 to -0.59) lower than if all consumed a post-dinner snack 3 to 7 times/week. CONCLUSIONS: Regular breakfast consumption and minimizing post-dinner snacking may modestly mitigate weight and body fat regain over 18 months after initial weight loss.

Frequency of Consuming Breakfast Meals and After-Dinner Snacks Is not Associated with Postmenopausal Breast Cancer Risk: Women's Health Initiative Observational Study.

BACKGROUND: There has been little investigation into how the timing of meals and eating occasions associates with postmenopausal breast cancer risk. OBJECTIVE: We examined the association between the frequency of consuming breakfast meals and after-dinner snacks with the risk for postmenopausal breast cancer. METHODS: A prospective analysis of 74,825 postmenopausal women aged 49 to 81 y from the Women's Health Initiative Observational Study cohort. Breakfast and after-dinner snack intake were assessed at year 1 examination. Risk for invasive and in situ breast cancer diagnosed before 28 February 2020 was modeled with multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression models according to breakfast and after-dinner snack consumption frequencies. The models were adjusted for age, self-identified race/ethnicity, education, income, physical activity, smoking, alcohol intake, diet quality score (Healthy Eating Index 2015), energy intake, diabetic status, hormone therapy, and BMI. RESULTS: During the follow-up period, 5313 participants were diagnosed with invasive breast cancer and 1197 participants with in situ breast cancer. Compared with participants who did not eat breakfast, those with daily breakfast consumption was not associated with invasive breast cancer (HR: 1.04; 95% CI: 0.9, 1.19) nor in situ (HR: 1.25; 95% CI: 0.91, 1.74) breast cancer. There were monotonic higher point estimates of in situ breast cancer for each higher category of breakfast intake from 0 to 7 times per week (P-trend = 0.04, Wald test). Compared with consumption of daily after-dinner snacks, avoidance of after-dinner snacks was not associated with invasive breast cancer (HR: 0.97; 95% CI: 0.87, 1.08) nor in situ (HR: 1.12; 95% CI: 0.89, 1.42) breast cancer. CONCLUSIONS: There was no association between intake frequency of breakfast meals or after-dinner snack habits and with risk of breast cancer in postmenopausal women.