Why Do You End Up Overeating In The Evening?

An old saying goes that we should eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a poor louse. Despite good intentions, this is a difficult recommendation to follow. It is especially difficult when you come home late from work. Therefore, you are not alone when it comes to overeating in the evening.

And we’m not just talking about overeating during dinner. It is not uncommon for people to raid the fridge for a bite to eat in the middle of the night. You can justify this by saying that a little food helps you fall asleep.

A big dinner not only damages your sleep quality, but it has other unpleasant consequences. Experts say that eating too much at night will make you feel guilty, bored and annoyed. Thus, it causes a negative impact on your rest and sleep quality.

Reasons why you overeat in the evening

Stress and anxiety are some of the reasons why you can eat a lot in the evening. These symptoms of modern life can increase the desire for food instead of rest. According to psychologists, people come home after a stressful day and look for ways to feel good. Food is undoubtedly a primary painkiller. In other words, people use food as a way out.

Your circadian rhythm can also play an important role in overeating in the evening. Studies indicate that your biological clock encourages you to eat sweet and salty foods high in starch. This behavior helped our ancestors store energy. Today, however, it has negative effects and makes it more difficult to maintain a healthy weight.

Why do you overeat in the evening?

The favorite for a late dinner or supper is to eat carbs. This type of food not only gives you pleasure: it is actually an addiction that does not make you feel full.

Foods high in carbohydrates also contain a lot of calories. When you eat them in the evening, you consume a large proportion of the calories you should distribute throughout the day.

It is no surprise that foods high in carbohydrates are known as “comfort foods”. This means that these foods can make you feel good and sometimes even relieve stress. This is the type of food that your body constantly needs.

Why is it a bad idea to overeat in the evening?

According to scientific studies, weight gain is not the only consequence of overeating in the evening. Stuffing food in the mouth in the evening also increases the risk of getting diabetes and heart disease.

A heavy dinner or night meal can increase blood sugar and insulin levels. If you do this regularly, you will be the perfect candidate for type II diabetes. Eating a lot in the evening can also increase cholesterol levels. This is one of the leading causes of heart disease or heart attack.

Other reasons not to overeat in the evening

• Eating at night can change your sleep patterns. It can even cause weird dreams and nightmares, especially in young people.
• Overeating in the evening can affect memory, learning and cognitive functions.
• According to studies, eating after 19:00 increases the risk of heart attack.
• Eating too much and then going to bed triggers gastroesophageal reflux.
• Because of the insulin your body produces when you eat, you will feel hungrier when you wake up.

Tips to avoid overeating in the evening

• Avoid eating dinner late. It is best to have the last meal before 8 or 9 pm.
• Plan your meals. If you have a meal plan for each day, it is easier to have control over yourself. Coming home tired and not knowing what to eat can lead to overeating.

• Write down a list of what you eat during the day. When you do this, you become aware of the type and amount of food you are eating. With that in mind, you can change your eating habits so that you become less hungry at night.
• Although it may sound simple, maintaining a good sleep routine will reduce your trips to the fridge at night. Being up late allows you to give in to temptation and eat every other to every three hours.