Shifting regular eating times on weekends is associated with a higher risk of heart disease in men, scientists have reported in Communications Medicine.
Researchers analyzed data from 104,806 adults who were followed over a 14-year period. The study compared the timing of participants' first and last meals on weekdays against their meal schedules on weekends.
For male participants, each additional hour of difference between weekday and weekend meal times was linked to an average 14 percent increase in the risk of cardiovascular disease. The risk of ischemic heart disease specifically rose by 21 percent for every hour of schedule shift.
The increased risk affected men who delayed their weekend meals as well as those who shifted their eating times earlier in the day. Researchers found no statistically significant link between weekend meal timing changes and heart disease risk in women.
The research team adjusted for multiple lifestyle and demographic factors, including participant age, smoking habits, alcohol intake, physical activity levels, dietary quality, and sleep duration. Even after accounting for these variables, the statistical association between inconsistent meal times and male heart disease remained distinct.
Biological rhythm disruption
Scientists suggested that sudden shifts in regular eating schedules disrupt the body's internal biological clock. They noted that the consistency of meal times throughout the week may be just as important for heart health as diet quality or avoiding late-night eating.
Circadian rhythms are internal 24-hour cycles that regulate crucial biological processes, including metabolism, hormone production, body temperature, and digestion. While light and darkness regulate the main master clock in the brain, meal times influence biological clocks located in organs such as the liver, pancreas, and stomach. When meal schedules fluctuate significantly on weekends, these peripheral organs can fall out of synchronization with the body's central clock, creating a state of internal temporal disruption.
Heart conditions and medical context
Cardiovascular disease is a broad term for medical conditions that affect the heart or blood vessels, including heart attacks, heart failure, and stroke. Ischemic heart disease, also referred to as coronary artery disease, occurs when fatty deposits build up inside the arteries, narrowing the blood vessels and restricting oxygen-rich blood flow to the cardiac muscle.
Communications Medicine, the journal that published the research, is a peer-reviewed open-access medical journal published by Nature Portfolio, part of Springer Nature. The journal features primary research across clinical medicine, public health, and translational research, adhering to standard academic peer review processes before publication.
Broader research links
The study adds to an expanding field of medical research examining how daily timing routines influence human metabolism and long-term health. Earlier findings cited in related health coverage noted that hormonal imbalances, specifically testosterone levels that are either higher or lower than normal, are also associated with an increased risk of atrial fibrillation, a common heart rhythm disorder.
