Benefits of restricted eating

Time travel that lets you zip ahead 1,000 years to see what’s going to happen in the future is a concept that’s fascinated everyone from H.G. Wells, who wrote “The Time Machine” in 1895, to Stephen Hawking, in his 2018, posthumously published “Brief Answers to the Big Questions.” But it’s only recently that people have been talking about the farreaching possibilities of time restriction — as in time-restricted eating (TRE).

Dr. Mike set out the guidelines for TRE in his book “What to Eat When”: Eat when the sun is up, have most calories before 3 p.m. and confine eating to nine to 12 hours a day.

Now, a new study on mice delves into differences in TRE’s benefits for males and females (prior lab studies were only of male mice).

In a study in Cell Reports, researchers found that TRE has significant benefits for young and old, male and female. The benefits include protection from fatty liver disease, pre- and fullblown diabetes, and infectious diseases and sepsis, a life-threatening response to infection. For males, TRE also helps with managing weight, preserving and adding muscle mass and muscle performance — at any age. For women, to gain the weight-managing benefits of TRE, try adding another 30 minutes of exercise or strength training five days a week.

If you’re interested in trying TRE, remember time-restricted doesn’t mean that what you eat is unrestricted. It’s still essential to stick with a plant-based diet; animal protein as a side, not an entree; and healthy fats from olive oil, avocados, walnuts and salmon.