Late-night snacking could increase your breast cancer recurrence risk
Recent research is encouraging breast cancer survivors to ditch the late-night snacks and extend their overnight fast in order to prevent cancer recurrence.
The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, showed that breast cancer survivors who fast for less than 13 hours every night have a 36% higher risk of that cancer coming back, compared to those who avoid food for 13 hours or longer.
Data were collected from 2413 women enrolled in the Women’s Healthy Eating and Living study between 1995 and 2007. The participants recorded what they ate and when, and nightly fasting duration was calculated for each participant.
The average woman fasted for 12.5 hours overnight, and the results showed that those who avoided eating for 13 hours or longer were more likely to stay cancer-free.
A fast is defined by the time between two "eating episodes" - anytime you consume more than 25 calories in one go. So, for example, if you finished dinner by 7 pm, you could have a cup of tea with skim milk before bed, and have breakfast the next day any time after 8 am to complete a 13 hour fast.
A longer fast is associated with better blood sugar regulation, which is protective against some types of tumours. Blood sugar control has other advantages too – it helps to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and other cancers.
Women who fast for over 13 hours a night also sleep for longer than those who don’t; late night eating can disrupt your sleep patterns by throwing off your circadian rhythm. Studies on shift workers have already shown that disrupted sleep patterns can put women at a higher risk for breast cancer.
Although more testing is needed to confirm these results, the researchers believe they’ve found an effective strategy for lowering the rate of breast cancer recurrence. For now, it’s worth a try. As well as reducing your recurrence risk, it could help you sleep better, and carries the added benefits of decreasing type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease risk.
This article first appeared in the May edition of our e-newsletter, the Pink Ribbon Express. Subscribe to receive the latest breast cancer news straight to your inbox.