7 Benefits of Chrono-Nutrition
We have a rhythm for nearly everything we do. We’ve established patterns for when we eat, sleep, exercise, go to work, watch a movie, listen to music, and so on. If any of those activities get disrupted, a bad day could be moments away. While disrupting some of these patterns may or may not affect our day, or our health, disrupting our chrono-nutrition rhythm can.
What Is Chrono-Nutrition?
We have an article that explains in detail what chrono-nutrition is, but we’ll summarize it here. Chrono-nutrition is syncing when we eat, what we eat, and how much we eat to our body’s biological clock, also known as the “circadian rhythm.” Our biological clock tells us when we need to sleep, wake up, or perform other activities. It is an essential part of maintaining our health. Although it is not known to cure diseases, chrono-nutrition does impact our overall health, and disrupting it can lead to unwelcomed results.
To illustrate the circadian rhythm, jet lag is a commonly used example concerning our biological clock. If you’ve ever traveled to a different time zone, or multiple, you may have experienced symptoms of fatigue during the daytime or waking from your sleep at random moments. Your body usually adapts to the new time zone within a day or two, depending on how many zones you’ve traveled. It demonstrates that if your sleep is disrupted, it can throw off your energy and focus levels. The same is true regarding when and what you eat and how much.
So, what are the benefits of chrono-nutrition? What happens if you maintain your circadian rhythm with proper nutrition and eating at consistent times? Glad you asked. Let’s discuss the seven benefits of chrono-nutrition.
#1. Stronger Immune System
When you eat nutrient-rich meals, you build your immune system. Adding supplements like our RISE supplement blend can also support your immune system. By eating healthy food on a consistent schedule, your body can absorb those nutrients with greater efficacy. When and what you eat can strengthen your immune system’s ability to fight off illness and other diseases.
#2. Weight Loss
If you eat at spontaneous times in the day, you may end up causing yourself to be hungry at moments when you shouldn’t be. Inadvertently, you might start to put on weight. Chrono-nutrition can help you manage your weight appropriately by synchronizing your eating with your circadian rhythm.
When and what you eat helps your metabolism to work more efficiently. It trains your body to go into “work mode” at specific times to break down and absorb those nutrients. Simultaneously, your metabolism can break down fat and sugar and distribute them for energy.
#3. Hormone Balance
Your pancreas creates insulin to help process foods and deliver to the body’s cells. Your body would not survive without it. However, your body can create too much or not enough insulin and the timing of what you eat and when plays a critical role.
What’s more is that disrupting the frequency, timing, and amount of food you consume can cause an imbalance of this essential hormone. That’s where chrono-nutrition comes into play; eating on a schedule will help your body’s internal clock know when to produce insulin and other digestive functionalities.
#4. Diabetes Prevention
Overeating and consuming too much fat and sugar are known to cause Type 2 Diabetes. Diabetes is a condition in which the pancreas is unable to produce enough insulin to keep up with an individual's sugar intake. Sometimes, the cells within the body become insulin resistant, which means they won't be able to take in the sugar and use it for energy.
Controlling your diet is one of the best ways to prevent this issue from occurring. However, making sure that you are eating at the right time, consistently, in connection with proper whole food eating, will help balance your hormones to prevent overeating and weight gain.
#5. Better Sleep
Keeping your diet synced with your circadian rhythm will give you the benefit of better sleep. Sporadic eating can cause you to feel hungry randomly, as mentioned earlier. This includes waking during the middle of the night and feeling hunger pangs. Not only is this inconvenient, but it interrupts your sleep, leading to sleep deprivation. Eating at consistent times can prevent you from waking in the middle of the night with hunger pangs, which will not only lead to a restful night but a productive day to follow.
Getting the proper nutrition can help your body rest better at night. That’s why we developed REST, a zero-sugar supplement with ingredients like magnesium and L-Theanine, designed to help you fall and stay asleep.
#6. Improved Energy
We’ve already hinted at this, but chrono-nutrition is another way to build and strengthen your energy levels thanks to proper sleep and nutrition. Synchronizing your eating schedule with your sleep pattern will give your body the energy it needs at the time it needs it. If the rhythm is interrupted, it could cause fatigue, impacting your cognitive abilities and productivity.
#7. Cardiovascular Disease Prevention
Controlling what you eat and when you eat is a handy tactic for reducing your cholesterol levels. Having an excessive buildup of cholesterol in your arteries causes cardiovascular diseases such as heart disease.
Cholesterol is often the guilty culprit when it comes to cardiovascular disease. However, several factors can cause cardiovascular diseases, such as smoking, diabetes, heart defects from birth, obesity, and high blood pressure. Many causes can be reduced by including exercise and proper eating in your daily activities.
How to Sync Chrono-Nutrition with Your Circadian Rhythm
So, what’s the best way to synchronize your chrono-nutrition with your circadian rhythm? Plan when, what, and how much you’re going to eat with your sleep schedule. Then, stick to that plan. Consistency is the key if you want to take full advantage of the benefits that come from syncing chrono-nutrition with your biological clock. However, don’t get discouraged if your rhythm gets disrupted. Life happens, and establishing good health is not a one-day achievement.