Does it matter when you eat for PCOS?

According to research, it may not only be important what you eat but when you eat.

Studies have shown that meal timing may benefit PCOS by specifically including most of your calories near the beginning of the day compared to the end of the day. This is usually not the case for the majority of women that I encounter. A typical scenario is skipping breakfast or just having coffee, a light lunch, and then over-eating in the evening due to cravings and mismanaged blood sugar and not to mention not getting enough calories during the day time. This is a disaster for PCOS management.

Planning your day with a bigger breakfast, moderate lunch, and lighter dinner may actually support insulin sensitivity and even reduce androgens and improve fertility.

A study looked at heavier breakfasts, rich in protein, compared to heavier dinners in PCOS women, showing declining levels of fasting serum glucose and insulin, total testosterone, free testosterone, DHEA-S, and androstenedione (1). There were also significantly more ovulations reported in the heavier breakfast group.

Though lean PCOS women were the study subjects this may also benefit overweight PCOS women.

Establishing regular eating times can also improve insulin sensitivity, postprandial thermogenesis (the rate at which your body breaks down food) and blood fat levels (typically high in PCOS women and measured by triglycerides).

By starting your day with a blood sugar-stabilizing meal you also reduce the risk of cravings and improve energy and focus making you more likely to make better choices throughout the day.

This means making sure you are getting a balanced meal with protein + fat + fiber starting at breakfast time! Need some breakfast inspo? Check out my blog.

The Circadian rhythm

We all have built-in 24 h clocks inside of our bodies which control appetite, hormone production, metabolism, cardiovascular function, etc.

When this is disrupted by things like inappropriate feeding times, blue light, shift work, electronics, artificial light, and all-nighters we start to see dysfunction setting in.

This has a profound effect on our health but also hormones and PCOS. Women with PCOS are said to have a dysfunction of their natural circadian rhythm (3). This is associated with insulin resistance, metabolic dysfunction, weight issues, mood imbalances, and digestive dysfunction. This can also make you feel sleepy upon waking, experience energy crashes, increased cravings and hunger, moodiness, and insomnia.

In today’s world, we are confusing our bodies by tricking them into thinking it is still daytime at night, eating at all hours of the day, and not exposing ourselves to natural light.

I recommend keeping feeding hours during daylight hours as close as possible and avoiding overloading your system at night time when we just don’t need more energy and when our body goes into repair mode.

What can you do?

Bedtime routine! I get all of my PCOS clients on this. Whether it be meditation, stretching, calming yoga, journaling, coloring, baths, reading or spending time with loved ones find something that brings you joy and that relaxes you!
Avoid electronics one hour before bed
Try to aim for bedtime between 10 and 11 PM
Wear blue light blockers if you have to use electronics or install the red light on iPhone or f.lux on your computer
Eat heavier meals at the beginning of the day vs the evening
Avoid eating 2-3 hours before bed, have a herbal tea instead