A commonly used method of dieting is now being questioned by a recent study. Dr. Milan Kumar Piya of the University of Warwick led a study that found watching your calories is more important than eating small meals throughout the day.

The researchers cited previous research that suggested “eating a single high-fat meal increases low-level inflammation in the body when bits of gut bacteria – known as endotoxins – enter the blood stream.” (MedicalNewsToday.com)

The purpose of the study was to see if this inflammation, which has been shown to cause a future risk of developing cardiovascular disease and type-2 diabetes, would be more damaging if a person were eating more often. The study found not only that the inflammation would be more harmful if a subject ate more meals a day but that the number of meals carried no real weight on the amount of calories burned in a day.

According to Medical News Today, Dr. Piya stated, “Firstly, that the size or frequency of the meal doesn't affect the calories we burn in a day, but what matters most for losing weight is counting calories. Secondly, by carrying more weight, more endotoxin enters the circulation to cause inflammation, and eating more often will exacerbate this risk, which has been linked to metabolic diseases such as type-2 diabetes."

 

Reach Executive Producer Miguel Arreola here.