Effect of isoenergetic intake of three or nine meals on plasma lipoproteins and glucose metabolism

Abstract

To investigate the effects of meal frequency on plasma lipid and carbohydrate metabolism, 19 healthy normocholesterolemic free-living men and women consumed their usual diet as three or nine meals per day in random order for 2 wk each. There was no significant difference in macronutrient intake. Compared with the three-meal/d diet, nine meals per day reduced fasting plasma total, low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol by 6.5% (P < 0.005), 8.1% (P < 0.005), and 4.1% (P < 0.05), respectively. Body weight, fasting triglycerides, apolipoproteins A-I and B, and the LDL-HDL cholesterol ratios were not different for the two diets, as were 24-h urinary C peptide-creatinine ratios and insulin-glucose response to a glucose load. The insulin-glucose curve measured over 3 h in the evening after the evening meal was flatter for the nine meals, but the areas under the curves were not significantly different. Increasing meal frequency while maintaining a constant nutrient intake produces a small but significant decrease in LDL cholesterol in normolipidemic free-living subjects.

Weight loss with meal replacement and meal replacement plus snacks: a randomized trial

“…It is possible that our approach was insensitive or inaccurate in classifying snackers, thus leading to null results with respect to matching snacking status with the use of snacks. 23 Another possibility is that our weight loss program was too intensive and a less intensive program may have yielded differences across conditions and by snacking status.…”

Glycemic index in chronic disease: a review

“…However, it has been shown that neither fat nor protein in the amounts found in most foods (with the exception of peanuts and most nuts) Lower postprandial glucose rise (Jenkins et al, 1990(Jenkins et al, ,1992Bertelsen et al, 1993;Jones et al, 1993) Reduced daily mean insulin levels (Jenkins et al, 1990(Jenkins et al, ,1992Bertelsen et al, 1993;Jones et al, 1993) Flatter gastric inhibitory polypeptide response (Jenkins et al, 1990(Jenkins et al, ,1992Bertelsen et al, 1993) Decreased 24 h urinary C-peptide output (Jenkins et al, 1989(Jenkins et al, ,1992 Prolonged suppression of plasma free fatty acids (Jenkins et al, 1990) Reduced urinary catecholamine output (Jenkins et al, 1990) Lower total and LDL cholesterol levels (Jenkins et al, 1989Arnold et al, 1993;Cohn 1964) Reduced hepatic cholesterol synthesis (Jones et al, 1993) Decreased serum apolipoprotein B levels (Jenkins et al, 1989) Decreased serum uric acid levels Raised urinary uric acid excretion Adapted from Jenkins et al (1995). Glycemic index in chronic disease LS Augustin et al significantly alters the glycemic response (Wolever et al, 1994).…”

“…The 'nibbling' vs 'gorging' paradigm has shown that increasing meal frequency (from 3 to > 9 meal=day) reduced total and LDL cholesterol, apolipoprotein-B and serum uric acid levels in healthy subjects, after a period of 2 weeks (Arnold et al, 1993;Jenkins et al, 1989Jones et al, 1993). Significant lipid reductions in total and LDL cholesterol (0.23, 0.16 mmol=l, respectively) were also reported in the Rancho Bernardo trial on more than 2000 men and women aged 50 -89 y, when meal frequency was increased from 1 -2 meals per day to 4 meals per day (Edelstein et al, 1992).…”

Sleep, circadian rhythm and body weight: parallel developments

“…The reduced diet-induced thermogenesis with the irregular meal frequency may lead to weight gain in the long term (102) . With a regular meal frequency glucose excursions are blunted, net insulin production is reduced, and LDLcholesterol concentrations tend to be lowered, mainly due to gastric emptying slowing down, and insulin production being reduced (103)(104)(105)(106)(107)(108)(109)(110)(111) . The net result is that lipid oxidation is favoured at the expense of glucose oxidation and lipid storage, and cholesterol synthesis is reduced.…”

“…This may reduce adiposity and the level of circulating fatty acids, thereby leading to systematic, adaptive changes in both lipid and carbohydrate metabolism. Also examples of long-term responses to a sustained regular meal frequency such as improved glucose tolerance, and moderately reduced fasting plasma total and LDL-cholesterol, and a higher HDL:LDL cholesterol ratio are observed in normolipidaemic free-living subjects, as well as in type-II diabetes patients (103)(104)(105)(106)(107)(108)(109)(110)(111) . Also for cholesterol synthesis, meal frequency-dependent control of cholesterogenesis appeared to be mediated via hormonal mechanisms (97) .…”