Experts recommend that you eat small meals throughout the day. A new school of thought suggests eating smaller meals more often. How often should you eat?
Eating smaller, more frequent meals
The Theory.Nutrition professionals recommend 3 meals with 350 to 600 calories each and 1 to 3 snacks per week (between 150 to 200 calories). There are many factors that influence the calories of each meal or snack, including height, gender, age, activity level, and gender. It is important to eat every 5 hours. People who go without food for long periods of time tend to be hungry and have a hard time making decisions. They will eat whatever food is available, even high-calorie snacks and fast food.
The pros: Having a healthy snack in between meals (e.g. cut vegetables and hummus, or half a PB&J sandwich on whole-wheat bread), can help curb hunger and allow people to make smart food choices.
Cons:One of the biggest problems I have seen with my clients is their tendency to eat too many snacks. Instead of eating 150-200 calories, they end up eating 400-500 calories. Snacks should be nutritious and provide the nutrients your body needs. High-calorie snacks like cookies, cakes, and sugary drinks tend to lack nutritional value.
Eating Larger, Less Frequent Meals
The Theory: Another school of thought suggests that you eat only one or two large meals per day. This gives you less opportunity to snack on excess calories throughout the day.
Cons: A Recent study showed that people who ate two large meals per day (breakfast/lunch) lost more weight than those who ate six smaller meals daily. The subjects were all diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
Cons: It should be noted, however that the study had only 54 participants. This is a small sample size. Experts who weren’t part of this study said that skipping dinner is impossible since it’s what most people have the time for. Skipping meals is not a good idea for diabetics. The glucose (aka sugar), they consume from food should be evenly distributed over the day.
This way of eating has a downside. Most people won’t be able absorb all the nutrients they need in one or two meals. (For example iron will not be absorbed if there are high levels of calcium.
Studies also show that eating more often can have negative effects. A 2007 study that was published in the Metabolic examined how people ate one large meal compared to three smaller meals. They were more likely to consume as many calories from one large meal than they were from three smaller meals. Researchers found that one meal could have potentially fatal metabolic consequences. People who skipped meals had higher blood sugar levels, and delayed insulin response. These are two conditions that can lead you to diabetes if you continue for a long time.
A 2010 study that was published in the British Journal of Nutrition concluded that subjects lost less weight when they ate three meals and three snacks per day, even though they ate the same calories.
The bottom line: Eat smaller meals more often than eating a few larger meals. But that doesn’t mean you can eat what you like. You should still be aware of calories and ensure that food choices are well-balanced from all food groups.