Time-Restricted Eating Enhances Weight Management Without Negative Effects: JAMA
Researchers have discovered in a new research that incorporating Time-Restricted Eating (TRE) into a Usual Care (UC) intervention can be an effective weight management approach. This strategy shows no adverse impact on sleep quality, mood, or overall quality of life, irrespective of the specific timing of the eating window. The study was conducted by Antonio C. and colleagues published in JAMA Network journal.
These results came from a secondary analysis of a Spanish randomized clinical trial that set out to discover whether the timing of an 8-hour eating window could affect key features of psychological and physical health in adults with overweight or obesity.
This parallel-group randomized clinical trial was performed from April 2022 to March 2023 at two Spanish study sites: Granada in the south and Pamplona in the north. Data analysis consisted of 197 men and women aged 30-60 years who were all overweight or obese according to a mean body mass index (BMI) of 32.8 (SD 3.2).
Patients were equally randomized into four groups:
• Usual care (UC) group: n = 49
• Early TRE group (eating window earlier than 10 a.m.): n = 49
• Late TRE group (eating window later than 1 p.m.): n = 52
• Self-selected TRE group (participants selected any 8-hour eating window): n = 47
All the participants in the TRE groups also received normal care in the form of education on the Mediterranean diet, while the UC group had a habitual eating window of ≥12 hours without any time restriction. Sleep outcomes were objectively assessed with accelerometers for two weeks prior to and two weeks subsequent to the 12-week intervention. Mood outcomes (anxiety, depression, stress) and quality of life were assessed via valid self-report measures pre- and post-intervention.
Key Findings
No group differences were found between those who used different eating windows, despite employing different times of eating, on a variety of outcome measures:
Total Sleep Time: Early TRE vs. UC revealed a mean difference of only 0.2 hours (95% CI, –0.2 to 0.6 hours).
Depression: Mean difference in Beck Depression Inventory Fast Screen score was 0.2 points (95% CI, –1.0 to 1.3).
Anxiety: State anxiety score on the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory had a mean difference of –1.2 points (95% CI, –6.4 to 4.1).
Perceived Stress: Mean difference was 2.1 points (95% CI, –1.8 to 5.9).
Quality of Life: Difference in RAND 36-Item SF Health Survey general health score was 3.3 points (95% CI, –4.4 to 10.9).
In this randomized clinical trial, researchers saw no evidence that various time-restricted eating schedules impacted sleep, mood, or quality of life. These results reinforce the application of TRE as a healthy diet regimen that can be combined with other lifestyle treatments such as the Mediterranean diet without compromising mental health or sleep behavior.
Reference:
Clavero-Jimeno A, Dote-Montero M, Migueles JH, et al. Time-Restricted Eating and Sleep, Mood, and Quality of Life in Adults With Overweight or Obesity: A Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Netw Open. 2025;8(6):e2517268. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.17268
