Eating smaller, more frequent meals is one of the most widespread pieces of dietary advice. For over 40 years, countless studies have proven the benefits of this eating habit, but recent research on animals could overturn this view. New animal studies show that two meals a day can contribute to the physical health of laboratory animals and extend their lifespans.
According to a report in the Spanish newspaper "El País", experiments on mice have shown that restricting food intake, reducing the number of meals, and dieting can prevent certain diseases and extend the mice's lifespan. With this dietary approach, the experimental mice showed greater resistance to animal forms of Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and cardiovascular diseases such as heart attacks, and their ability to cope with stress was also enhanced.
A study by the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging and the Neurosciences Laboratory in the United States has shown that reducing the food intake of experimental mice and intermittent fasting can stimulate an increase in BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor) in the mouse brain. According to the research, BDNF can enhance the resistance of nerve cells to natural aging and improve the ability to recover from injuries.
Recently published research on the eating habits of healthy adults who reduced the number of meals per day without reducing their intake of calories, vitamins, and minerals showed that such eating habits did not cause significant changes in the frequency of heart attacks and most healthy blood parameters. However, if a person eats only one meal a day, their body fat content decreases significantly, but their temper worsens, and their blood pressure and total cholesterol levels rise.
Scientists believe that further research is needed on how the number of meals per day affects health, so they recommend that people maintain their current eating habits of four to five meals a day.