Later Meal Times Linked to Higher Mortality in Large U.S. Study

A study of 31,044 U.S. adults found that eating the first meal later was associated with higher all-cause and cardiovascular mortality.

Medicine

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A large U.S. cohort study examined whether the timing of daily meals was linked with mortality. Researchers analyzed 31,044 adults aged 40 and older from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, using reported meal times and later death records. Over a median follow-up of about 8.6 years, 7,129 deaths were recorded. Compared with people whose first meal was between 7 and 8 a.m., those reporting their first meal after noon had a 29% higher relative risk of all-cause mortality and a 46% higher relative risk of cardiovascular mortality. The study also found higher mortality associations among people whose final meal was before 7 p.m. or after midnight, compared with a final meal around 7 to 8 p.m. The researchers estimated shorter life expectancy at age 50 among people with very late first or last meals. These findings describe associations, not proof that eating later directly causes earlier death. The study relied on dietary recall and observational population data, so factors such as work schedules, sleep patterns, health status, food access, and other lifestyle differences may contribute to the observed relationships. The results add to research on meal timing and health, but they do not establish a simple rule that everyone must eat breakfast at a particular hour.

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