Time-restricted eating does not confer changes in sleep, mood, or quality of life

1. Time-restricted eating, regardless of timing of the eating window, did not result in significant changes in sleep, mood, or quality of life compared with usual care alone.

Evidence Rating Level: 2 (Good)

Although time-restricted eating (TRE) is a promising dietary approach for weight loss, it is unknown whether the timing of the eating window affects sleep, mood, and quality of life differently. This study thus examined whether three TRE schedule were associated with changes in sleep, mood, and quality of life compared with usual care (UC) alone in adults with overweight or obesity. This was a secondary analysis of adults aged 30 to 60 years with overweight or obesity from a parallel-group randomized clinical trial conducted in Granada (southern Spain) and Pamplona (northern Spain) between April 11, 2022, and March 6, 2023. Participants were randomized 1:1:1:1 to either the UC group (daily eating window of ≥12 hours & Mediterranean diet education program), early TRE group (8-hour eating window starting before 10 am), late TRE group (8-hour eating window starting after 1 pm), or self-selected TRE (chose own 8-hour eating window). Sleep, mood, and quality were assessed at baseline and after the 12-week intervention. In total, 197 participants were included (mean [SD] age, 46.1 [8.4] years; 98 women [49.7%]; mean [SD] body mass index, 32.8 [3.2] kg/m2), with 49 in the UC group, 49 in the early TRE group, 52 in the late TRE group, and 47 in the self-selected TRE group. Compared to the UC group, the early TRE group did not significantly differ in sleep (mean difference in total sleep time, 0.2 [95% CI, –0.2 to 0.6] hours), mood (mean difference in Beck Depression Inventory Fast Screen score, 0.2 [95% CI, –1.0 to 1.3] points; mean difference in state anxiety score on the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, –1.2 [95% CI, –6.4 to 4.1] points; mean difference in Perceived Stress Scale score, 2.1 [95% CI, –1.8 to 5.9] points), and quality of life (mean difference in general health score on the Rand 36-Item Short Form Health Survey, 3.3 [95% CI, –4.4 to 10.9] points). There were also no significant differences when comparing late TRE and self-selected TRE groups to the UC group, as well as between TRE groups. Overall, this study found that in adults with overweight or obesity, including TRE into a UC intervention, regardless of the timing of the eating window, did not lead to significant changes in sleep, mood, or quality of life compared with UC alone. These findings suggest that TRE may be an effective weight management strategy without adversely affecting overall sleep health and psychological well-being. Future studies should confirm these results in larger populations and among those with specific sleep disturbances or mood disorders.

Click to read the study in JAMA Network Open

Image: PD

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