Time to Help Your Health     
    
   Want better sleep, to lose weight, prevent certain diseases? 

Without going on a diet, or strenuous exercise? 

   Consider the clock. The device we use to keep appointments also can promote your health. 

   The trick is to consume your calories within a 10-hour period, leaving the rest of the 24-hour day for fasting...for your major organs to rest and recover. 

   Erratic eating, shift work and habits like midnight snacks contribute to obesity, diabetes and heart disease. A consistent cycle of feeding and fasting apparently supports the ebb and flow of the body's natural rhythms. 

   A California biologist says, "Every cell, every organ has its clock, and every organ needs downtime to repair, rest and regain its rhythm." 

   In a pilot program, participants limited their food intake to under 11 hours for 12 weeks. They cut their calorie intake by almost 9 percent, lost an average of 3 percent of their body weight, and enjoyed more restful sleep - all improvements that could prevent a progression to diabetes. They also reduced belly fat - a sign of future heart disease - by 3 percent. 

   Also, the group's blood pressure fell. Cholesterol readings and other measures improved.

   None of this required increased physical activity. Routine methods like more exercise, fewer calories and strict diets are hard to sustain.

   All the researchers asked was that participants watch the clock, eat within a block of time, and fast the rest of the day. 

        Jimmy