Boost gut health and immunity by not eating for these hours, Tim Spector says

Tim Spector
-Credit: (Image: Tim Spector/Instagram)


People have been urged not to eat between certain hours overnight to improve their gut health and even their immunity for fighting off illnesses. Professor Tim Spector, the founder of Zoe Health, revealed that giving your gut a "rest" can allow it to function at its best.

In a video posted to Instagram, Tim shared this advice as part of his five top tips to improve your health. He told his followers that eating within a certain window means microbes are able to “clean” the gut lining.

In the video he explained: “Try and have a break, so that you are eating within a 10 or 12-hour window so your microbes get a good night's sleep.” Expanding on this in the video caption, he said: “Give your gut a rest - ideally 12 to 14 hours overnight, to allow specific microbes including Akkermansia muciniphila to clean up your gut lining and keep it healthy, which is important for supporting a healthy gut and immune system.”

Akkermansia muciniphila is a mucin degrading bacterium found in the gut. Scientists say that it is linked to a lower risk for health issues such as obesity, diabetes, inflammation, and metabolic disorders.

On the Zoe website, Tim provided more advice on how to give your gut a break. He said: “Try to avoid or limit snacking, and aim to give your gut bugs time to rest overnight.

“At night, there is a whole team of gut microbes that work to clean up your gut lining and keep it healthy. This regular cleaning is important for supporting a healthy gut and immune system. By giving your gut bugs a break, they'll have time to recover to do their job well.”

His other four tips to improve your health were:

  • Eat 30 different plants a week

  • Eat the rainbow - getting as much colour into your diet as possible

  • Have a little bit of fermented food every day

  • Reduce your consumption of ultra-processed foods.

He added: “Do all these things and you can't go far wrong.”