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Cronodiet, how it works

We share the science behind this new trend: the chronodiet.

Chronodiet, how it works Copy Cwp April 8, 2018 No Comments A dietary trend that is fashionable and is based on chronobiology. That is, the biological rhythms that set the needs of our body. This is called a chronodiet. Chronobiology Chronobiology is a discipline of physiology that studies the biological rhythms of human beings. Which are formed by the conjunction of multiple factors. Such as, for example, the solar rhythm, the lunar rhythm and the terrestrial rhythm. All these elements influence the biological processes of living beings, their alterations and physical, psychological and emotional mechanisms that occur in them. Chronobiology was born as a science in 1729, when the French physicist Jean Jacques d’Ortous de Mairan observed that a plant opened its leaves during the day and closed them at night. Years later it was shown that the plant had an endogenous biological clock that allowed it to recognize nights regardless of the absence of sunlight. In this same way, humans have a biological clock that influences all our areas. Let’s just focus on nutrition. Nutritional rhythms The use of chronobiology applied to the nutritional needs of our body is called rhythmnutrition. A diet that evolves into more complex treatments, where the administration of nutrients is in accordance with biological rhythms, also known as circadian. Marked by our metabolism. The biological rhyme is found in the suprachiasmatic nucleus, a set of neurons in the hypothalamus that functions through the amount of light that our eyes capture. Depending on whether there is more or less light, our circadian rhythms are modified. That is why they change according to the conditions. actions of the year. In rhythmnutrition, the body’s biological rhythms are used to teach the patient what and when to eat. In this way, the ideal time to ingest a certain nutrient is known. Which is very useful in weight loss strategies. The intake of any specific food is not prohibited, rather it is indicated at certain times of the day they can be allowed. Beyond how attractive and curious this theory could be, the detractors of rhythmnutrition assure that there is not enough data to indicate that chronobiology can be useful and accurate when recommending a chronodiet. We will have to wait for more serious investigations, the truth is that it is very interesting. The therapeutic approaches of the future will be to regulate meal times and find appropriate times for the intake of each type of food. Dr. Monereo talks about mutations, and in this sense it should be noted that 30% of the population has a mutation that makes them produce a substance called thymine instead of another called cytoxin. And, thus, we find people who, eating the same thing, have a greater or lesser propensity to convert those foods into fat. “They are more likely to have their body not synchronize their clocks well, they are disordered in their habits and tend to eat in the evening, when they gain the most weight,” concludes Dr. Garaulet. “This has to do with their genetics, but the important thing is that, despite this, with correct habits we can prevent those genes from being expressed. Genes can predetermine you, but they do not predestine you. It is not true what Marañón said that “the individual is born obese and dies obese.” That fatalistic vision does a lot of damage. 5 keys to getting on time With white or LED light, the body does not He knows if it is day or night. For this reason, it is advisable to eliminate fluorescent lights from kitchens and put yellow light lamps in their place. So that the body recognizes that it is not daytime. You have to avoid snacking and have clear meal times so that the body can know what time it is. A minimum of three meals a day should be eaten. Up to five daily intakes can be made. But keeping in mind that the number of calories in each of them will have to be reduced. We should not eat at night. Our body is not prepared for it. It perceives it as if it were daytime and desynchronizes all our clocks. We need to have a little dinner, and soon. Allowing time to pass between dinner and bedtime. We must eat slowly. It is known that obese women tend to eat in half the time than thin women. This speed is harmful to our chronobiology and to the body’s satiety systems. And it is associated with increased ghrelin, decreased leptin and worse sleep.