Eating one meal a day can increase blood pressure and cholesterol. This occurred in a group of healthy adults who switched to one meal a day to participate in a study. If you already have doubts in any of these areas, eating just once a day may not be safe. Eating a late meal can cause your blood sugar level to rise.
Eating just one meal a day can help reduce inflammation. Fasting has been shown to reduce inflammation by attenuating pro-inflammatory cytokines in immune cells, while allowing the intestinal lining to regenerate. Eating one meal a day may also increase HDL cholesterol levels, suggests a study published in the Annual Review of Nutrition. Researchers show that people who ate one meal a day had higher levels of HDL on an empty stomach than those who ate three meals.
This could mean that eating once a day is helpful for people who have low HDL levels. Interestingly, the study also showed that eating once a day lowered LDL levels, which contradicts other research on the subject. When participants ate just one meal a day, they saw a greater reduction in their body weight and fat mass. However, participants also had greater reductions in lean mass and bone density when eating just one meal a day.
This may reduce muscle function and increase the risk of bone fractures if the diet is followed for a longer period of time.