Assessment of motivating factors to follow a time-restricted eating dietary protocol
Marlene Lages1,2,3,4, Sara Carmo-Silva5,6, Renata Barros2,3,4, Maria P. Guarino1,7
1ciTechCare – Center for Innovative Care and Health Technology, Polytechnic University of Leiria, Leiria, Portugal
2Faculty of Nutrition and Food Sciences, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
3Laboratory for Integrative and Translational Research in Population Health (ITR), University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
4EPIUnit - Institute of Public Health, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
5Polytechnic Institute of Castelo Branco, Castelo Branco, Portugal
6Coimbra Health School, Polytechnic University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
7ESSLei, School of Health Sciences, Polytechnic University of Leiria, Leiria, Portugal
Introduction: The number of clinical studies assessing the effects of time-restricted eating (TRE) has increased in recent years (1). The results of the studies conducted on humans demonstrate some health benefits, however, there is still a need to design larger and longer randomized clinical trials to prove the effectiveness and long-term benefits of these types of interventions (2). However, to ensure these health benefits, individuals need to be able to integrate its principles into their daily routines. This work aimed to associate daily habits with the potential adherence to different TRE protocols and to determine the factors that predict adherence to these protocols.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using an online questionnaire based on a previous study (3), to assess the dietary and sleeping habits, daily routines and willingness to adhere to different windows of time-restricted eating in a sample of Portuguese adults. To analyze the associations between variables, the Spearman correlation coefficient and the Chi-Square test were calculated, and multiple linear regression was performed to identify the predictive factors. Statistical analysis was conducted on IBM SPSS Statistics version 29.0.
Results: 130 responses were obtained (26% men, 74% women) with a mean age of 37.9±13.59 years old. On workdays, 60.0% of participants reported a daily eating window (the period between the first and last caloric intake) of 12h-14h, while on free days the highest percentage (41.5%) was between 10h-12h. An inverse correlation was observed between age and willingness to adhere to a TRE protocol if there were health benefits (r=-0.356, p<0.001). Moderate correlations were also found between the availability to follow a TRE protocol on workdays (r=0.538) and free days (r=0.598) and the potential health benefits of this type of intervention (p<0.001). Associations were found between sex and potential adherence to the TRE protocol (χ²=10.644, df=2, p=0.005), with a tendency for more men not to adhere to a TRE protocol. There was also an association between body weight management and reducing the eating window by 1h-2h (χ² =24.883, df=12, p=0.015) and 2h-3h (χ²=22.367, df=12, p=0.034). The living situation, motivation for change, income, weight management, cooking knowledge, and working schedule were among the main factors predicting the willingness to adhere to TRE protocols (p<0.05).
Conclusions: People’s willingness and motivation to adhere to TRE protocols outside the controlled environment of a clinical study depends on several factors. The results presented herein provide information that may be central when considering the translation of study results into nutritional practice and counselling.
References:
1. Sun JC, Tan ZT, He CJ et al. (2023) Eur J Clin Nutr 77, 1014–1025
2. Manoogian ENC, Chow LS, Taub PR et al. (2022) Endocr Rev 42, 405-436
3. Jefcoate PW, Robertson MD, Ogden J et al. (2021) Appetite 164, 105240
Funding:This work is funded by national funds from the Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT) (UI/05704/2020) and by the Emilio Peres 2020 Scholarship from the Portuguese Society of Diabetology. ML is financed by the FCT Doctoral Scholarship (2021.07673.BD). MPG is financed by the Scientific Employment Stimulus – Institutional Competition – CEECINST/00051/2018.

**Assessment of motivating factors to follow a time-restricted eating dietary protocol**
Marlene Lages1,2,3,4, Sara Carmo-Silva5,6, Renata Barros2,3,4, Maria P. Guarino1,7
1ciTechCare – Center for Innovative Care and Health Technology, Polytechnic University of Leiria, Leiria, Portugal
2Faculty of Nutrition and Food Sciences, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
3Laboratory for Integrative and Translational Research in Population Health (ITR), University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
4EPIUnit - Institute of Public Health, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal
5Polytechnic Institute of Castelo Branco, Castelo Branco, Portugal
6Coimbra Health School, Polytechnic University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
7ESSLei, School of Health Sciences, Polytechnic University of Leiria, Leiria, Portugal
**Introduction:** The number of clinical studies assessing the effects of time-restricted eating (TRE) has increased in recent years (1). The results of the studies conducted on humans demonstrate some health benefits, however, there is still a need to design larger and longer randomized clinical trials to prove the effectiveness and long-term benefits of these types of interventions (2). However, to ensure these health benefits, individuals need to be able to integrate its principles into their daily routines. This work aimed to associate daily habits with the potential adherence to different TRE protocols and to determine the factors that predict adherence to these protocols.
**Methods:** A cross-sectional study was conducted using an online questionnaire based on a previous study (3), to assess the dietary and sleeping habits, daily routines and willingness to adhere to different windows of time-restricted eating in a sample of Portuguese adults. To analyze the associations between variables, the Spearman correlation coefficient and the Chi-Square test were calculated, and multiple linear regression was performed to identify the predictive factors. Statistical analysis was conducted on IBM SPSS Statistics version 29.0.
**Results:** 130 responses were obtained (26% men, 74% women) with a mean age of 37.9±13.59 years old. On workdays, 60.0% of participants reported a daily eating window (the period between the first and last caloric intake) of 12h-14h, while on free days the highest percentage (41.5%) was between 10h-12h. An inverse correlation was observed between age and willingness to adhere to a TRE protocol if there were health benefits (r=-0.356, p<0.001). Moderate correlations were also found between the availability to follow a TRE protocol on workdays (r=0.538) and free days (r=0.598) and the potential health benefits of this type of intervention (p<0.001). Associations were found between sex and potential adherence to the TRE protocol (χ²=10.644, df=2, p=0.005), with a tendency for more men not to adhere to a TRE protocol. There was also an association between body weight management and reducing the eating window by 1h-2h (χ² =24.883, df=12, p=0.015) and 2h-3h (χ²=22.367, df=12, p=0.034). The living situation, motivation for change, income, weight management, cooking knowledge, and working schedule were among the main factors predicting the willingness to adhere to TRE protocols (p<0.05).
**Conclusions:** People’s willingness and motivation to adhere to TRE protocols outside the controlled environment of a clinical study depends on several factors. The results presented herein provide information that may be central when considering the translation of study results into nutritional practice and counselling.
**References:**
1. Sun JC, Tan ZT, He CJ et al. (2023) _Eur J Clin Nutr_ 77, 1014–1025
2. Manoogian ENC, Chow LS, Taub PR et al. (2022) _Endocr Rev_ 42, 405-436
3. Jefcoate PW, Robertson MD, Ogden J et al. (2021) _Appetite_ 164, 105240
**Funding:**This work is funded by national funds from the Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT) (UI/05704/2020) and by the Emilio Peres 2020 Scholarship from the Portuguese Society of Diabetology. ML is financed by the FCT Doctoral Scholarship (2021.07673.BD). MPG is financed by the Scientific Employment Stimulus – Institutional Competition – CEECINST/00051/2018.

Assessment of motivating factors to follow a time-restricted eating dietary protocol

Circadian rhythms are physical, mental, and behavioral changes that follow an intrinsic 24-hour cycle. These natural processes respond primarily to light and dark and affect most living things, including animals, plants, and microbes. Circadian rhythm regulation plays a crucial role in healthy lives and a dysfunction of circadian rhythm is linked to increased disease risk. 

This meeting includes plenary lectures from the leading experts in the field, supported by evolving science insights from Early Career Researchers. The meeting will explore nutrient and diet interaction with circadian rhythms, chrono-nutrition for health and circadian systems in disease.