A recent study published in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention explains that decreasing the time spent eating and increasing overnight fasting lowers glucose levels and might reduce the risk for breast cancer among women. The study was carried at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and the findings were presented during the American Association of Cancer Research’s annual meeting, held in Philadelphia.

“Increasing the duration of overnight fasting could be a novel strategy to reduce the risk of developing breast cancer. This is a simple dietary change that we believe most women can understand and adopt. It may have a big impact on public health without requiring complicated counting of calories or nutrients,” said Catherine Marinac, the papers’ first author and UC San Diego doctoral candidate.

Researchers found that women who fasted overnight for longer periods revealed a better control over blood glucose concentrations; independently of what they ate, each three hours of fasting corresponded to a 4 percent lower postprandial glucose level.

“The dietary advice for cancer prevention usually focuses on limiting consumption of red meat, alcohol and refined grains while increasing plant-based foods. New evidence suggests that when and how often people eat can also play a role in cancer risk,” noted Ruth Patterson, who is the leader of the cancer prevention program.

The women under assessment reported eating 5 times per day with a 12 hour night-time fasting period. Women who reported longer fast periods indicated they consumed fewer calories per day, had fewer eating episodes and ate fewer calories after 10 p.m.

Researchers suggest that large-scale clinical trials are necessary to confirm that nighttime fasting implies favorable changes to glycemic control biomarkers and breast cancer risk.