A recent study has uncovered that the eating habits formed under winter light conditions may be more beneficial for metabolic health than those developed under summer light, at least in the case of mice.
This research, which offers new insights into how light influences metabolism, was conducted by Lewin Small, a postdoctoral researcher at the Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Basic Metabolic Research at the University of Copenhagen.
The study marks the first of its kind to investigate how variations in daylight hours impact the metabolism of mice, animals like humans that don’t breed seasonally.
Seasonal breeders often gain weight before their breeding season to conserve energy. However, the research team was curious about the effects of seasonal light changes on non-seasonal animals.
The inspiration for this study came from observing the dramatic differences in daylight hours in different parts of the world.
Small, originally from Australia, was intrigued by the marked contrast in daylight between summer and winter after moving to Denmark. This contrast led the team to explore how these variations might affect circadian rhythms and metabolic health.
In their experiments, the researchers exposed laboratory mice to different light hours representing various seasons. They measured the animals’ metabolic health markers and the circadian rhythms.
Surprisingly, mice exposed to winter light had less body weight gain, reduced fat mass, and lower liver fat content. They also exhibited more rhythmic eating patterns over a 24-hour period, leading to improved metabolic health.
While this research provides valuable insights, it’s essential to note that it was conducted on mice, and one cannot automatically assume the same effects would occur in humans.
However, senior author Juleen Zierath, a professor at the Novo Nordisk Center, highlights the study’s significance as a proof of principle. It demonstrates that differences in light hours do indeed affect energy metabolism.
This finding opens the door to further human studies. These could explore whether modifying exposure to artificial light at night or natural light throughout the year might improve metabolic health.
Small believes this research is crucial for understanding how eating patterns are influenced by light and seasons. It could shed light on why some people gain more weight or if there’s a tendency to gain more weight during specific times of the year.
The study, published in Cell Metabolism, suggests that the difference in light between summer and winter could affect our hunger pathways and the timing of our hunger throughout the day.
This research could pave the way for more targeted approaches to managing weight and metabolic health based on seasonal light variations.
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The research findings can be found in the journal Cell Metabolism.
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