Professor Tim Spector warns against late-night food mistake for your gut health

Professor Tim Spector
-Credit:Professor Tim Spector/Instagram


A nutrition expert has issued a warning about a common night time habit that could be wreaking havoc on your gut health. Professor Tim Spector, an epidemiologist and founder of Zoe Health, is advising against indulging in late-night treats.

To bolster your gut lining and boost your immune system, he recommends a 12 to 14-hour pause between dinner and breakfast. During an appearance on That Gaby Roslin Podcast, Tim advised host Gaby Roslin on the importance of giving our guts a break during the night.

He said: "Give your gut a rest overnight, don't late night snack. Improve your gut lining by, you know, having 12 to 14 hours overnight where you’re not eating."

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When Gaby queried if this was a form of intermittent fasting, Tim clarified it as "time restricted eating," which falls under the umbrella of intermittent fasting but doesn't focus on calorie intake. Tim elaborated: "It's less restrictive and it doesn't mean you're reducing calories."

He added: "You're reducing the time window in which you're eating." This isn't the first instance of Tim promoting the benefits of time-restricted eating.

In a video posted to his Instagram last year, he explained that confining eating to a specific timeframe allows gut microbes to "clean" the gut lining effectively. He suggested: "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."

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Elaborating further in the video caption, he explained: "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 human gut. Studies have indicated its association with a reduced risk of health problems such as obesity, diabetes, inflammation, and metabolic disorders.

On the Zoe website, Tim offered additional tips on how to give your digestive system a break, advising: "Try to avoid or limit snacking, and aim to give your gut bugs time to rest overnight."

He added: "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."