Martin over at LeanGains has a must-read post on a new study showing that fewer meals results in better blood sugar control compared to more frequent meals.
Money quote from the study Martin reviews:
There has been considerable promotion both by the medical community and the lay press to consume 6 meals per day for weight loss or for glycemic control but our data indicate that the glucose AUC is 30% higher over the course of the day with a frequent high carbohydrate feeding than when consuming 3 meals per day.
AUC is area under the curve, and it’s basically a mathematical way of looking at a measurement over time. As Martin goes on to discuss, this was a good, but very small study (and it’s always good practice to take any single study with a grain of salt).
Me, I am currently eating three times a day and occasionally skip breakfast. If you like, keep eating 5-6 smaller meals (especially if it feels like it was written on a stone tablet somewhere). But if hunger or other reasons have you needing to eat those smaller meals, you’re probably eating too many refined grains and/or sugar. Might be worth an experiment to try a different approach and see how that works for you!
