Why is it important to eat after dinner

[bikrchk 1,313]

I was specifically directed to add 2 Snacks at my 1 month follow up. WHEN was not important. At that point I wasn't hungry anyway so I put them between Breakfast and lunch and lunch and dinner. What WAS important was that I get a bit more nutrition and calories that I could fit in 3 meals per day. It was also important that they were planned high Protein snacks and that I not succumb to "grazing" behavior. This was good advice for me from a success perspective. When I began feeding my body adequately my weight loss picked up, my energy level increased. I healed without issues and reached goal in the first year. Oh yeah... I had a treat, popcorn or a Skinny Cow bar several nights per week while I was losing! :-O HORRORS! I worked it into my meal plan and managed to lose and maintain the weight anyway never feeling guilty or deprived. Nothing in the world wrong with that!

[Bruce Peter 39]

I was instructed to have 6 small meals a day.

[jayhawkgirl 33]

Initially, after my surgery I was told not to snack. They were trying to break the "grazing" habit that many of us have issues with. However, in post surgery visits since, the nutritionist has not admonished me for snacking. They're just more concerned about counting the total number of calories in a day. Again, every surgeon/nutritionist could have different advise for their clients.

[jaysleever 61]

my only concern is that snacking is best done only when needed not a habit forming feel good remedy to boredom or depression. I snack but only in between meals and especially not after dinner. I don't think its healthy to have food in the stomach when lying down going to sleep. Im not saying to deprive oneself but snacking has to be very carefully monitored so as not to form grazing habits because of what we think hear or see.

[jaysleever 61]

And as far as eating more than 3 meals a day and 2 Snacks I guess doctors are telling their patients to eat as many meals and snacks as they want sounds like a dream come true but I guess some of us will pay the price for indulging too much but hey what do I know.

[Essence46 493]

Oh my goodness!! Everyone should just do what works for them. What works for some may not work for others. I had dinner around 6 pm which was about 4 ounces of cabbage. I know I haven't eaten enough food/calories today. My body tells me when I haven't eaten enough. I am sitting here now eating two deviled eggs because I am hungry and will be up until at least 1 am. I don't think an after dinner snack will kill you as long as you don't do it every day and you are eating something healthy. Again do what is best for you.

[ProjectMe 909]

Night eating is a bad habit that was a big contributor to obesity. After a dinner it's not hunger that you experience but the mental obsession with food that carried over after the surgery.

I have to admit that the only times I feel like I'm eating just to be eating is after dinner. I could be just sitting there watching a tv show or reading when all of a sudden a snack sounds good. Technically I'm not really hungry...so I'm really not sure what the trigger is. Boredom? Sleepiness? I don't know, but it is something I need to be mindful of.

[jaysleever 61]

Well over a year out and only 4 ounce meals that is so sad. So I guess to feed the human body the proper nutrition and calories yeah I guess it's more than 3 meals a day. I'm so grateful I don't have to eat micro meals all day it doesn't strike me as practical especially for those that work. It doesn't sound like fun to eat all day. But hey for those that like to chew I guess is a welcome activity.

[jaysleever 61]

Well for those that are over a year out and only 4 ounce meals that is so sad. So I guess to feed the human body the proper nutrition and calories yeah I guess it's more than 3 meals a day. I'm so grateful I don't have to eat micro meals all day it doesn't strike me as practical especially for those that work. It doesn't sound like fun to eat all day. But hey for those that like to chew I guess is a welcome activity.

[Stephanie Salsera Perrott 85]

We're here to support each other during a surgery that is unknown and scary not to judge what each other is eating. This is a positive board not a food debate board. Now that I got that out of the way I would dare to say a HUGE % of us on here have lost large amounts of weight previously and already know what to eat and drink. Cheers everyone.

food releases a feel good chemical that lights up the same pleasure center of the brain that drugs and alcohol and sex do. So it becomes a pattern of oh im hungry let me eat now there is a reward felt through feeling better. A lot of the time if not all a glass of Water will fill the stomach up and quench that hunger feeling. But isn't it the hunger feeling we felt even though we had a big meal and that because of hunger we ate way more than the body can process and as a result stored it as fat.

[roundisashape 712]

Eh, if it works for you, do it - if not, don't. If it fits into your plan for the day and you're not making yourself sick trying to shove it all in at once, I'm not sure it matters whether you eat after dinnertime or not.

[VSGAnn2014 12,992]

I was a little confused by the OP -- not sure you were advised to eat or to not eat after dinner.

But in my situation (only describing mine) ...

Pre-op, snacking at night was the only time I really overate all day long. Therefore, for me, snacking at night is a "dangerous" situation. Therefore, I try not to snack after dinner.

There's another reason one may NOT want to snack at night ... and that's GERD.

Here's a fairly recent NYTimes article about the benefits of not eating for 3 hours before you lie down to sleep. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/26/opinion/sunday/the-dangers-of-eating-late-at-night.html?_r=0

Spoiler alert: "To stop the remarkable increase in reflux disease, we have to stop eating by 8 p.m., or whatever time falls at least three hours before bed."

[BLERDgirl 6,417]

I just eat later. My dinner usually occurs between 7 and 9. I am also a night owl. Bedtime for me is between 12 and 1 am.

Edited March 23, 2015 by BLERDgirl

[jaysleever 61]

How is night eating considered healthy

[jaysleever 61]

If your getting your proper nourishment during the day I mean if you cannot manage getting in your Protein before dinnertime you have all day if not then I'm missing something