Other studies have shown that eating one meal per day may increase fasting blood sugar levels, delay the body's response to insulin, and increase levels of the appetite-stimulating hormone ghrelin, compared to eating 3 meals per day. This can lead to extreme hunger ( 10 ).
The Potential Dangers of the One Meal a Day Diet
Furthermore, restricting your calories to one meal a day may increase your risk of hypoglycemia, which means that your blood sugar levels will be too low, especially if you have type 2 diabetes.
Your body will think it's starving and go into "starvation mode." Your metabolism is there to burn calories, making it easier to lose weight. But if you only eat once a day, it will slow down in order to hold that "energy" for later use.
The OMAD Diet can be a hugely beneficial technique for people living with diabetes to reduce their blood glucose, body weight, and insulin concentrations, especially when paired with a proper diabetes diet.
Subjects consuming a single large daily meal exhibit elevated fasting glucose levels, and impaired morning glucose tolerance associated with a delayed insulin response, during a 2 month diet period compared to those consuming 3 meals/day.
What's more, restricting calories to one meal a day may increase the chances of hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar, especially in those with type 2 diabetes ( 11 ). In addition to these potential adverse effects, eating one meal a day can lead to symptoms including ( 12 ): nausea.
Skipping breakfast—going without that morning meal can increase blood sugar after both lunch and dinner. Time of day—blood sugar can be harder to control the later it gets.
Besides meal composition, meal timing has also been suggested to be an important factor regulating glucose tolerance, including insulin sensitivity, with elevated postprandial glucose levels reported to be higher in the evening than in the morning [4,5,6].
After a period of fasting, insulin sensitivity increases, and insulin levels decrease. These changes result in improved blood sugar levels both during fasting and shortly after eating.
When fasted, we get significant reductions in blood sugar and insulin levels, as well as a drastic increase in human growth hormone ( 4 , 5 ). Many people do intermittent fasting in order to lose weight, as it is a very simple and effective way to restrict calories and burn fat (6, 7, 8).
Some things that can make low blood sugar levels more likely are: skipping meals and snacks. not eating enough food during a meal or snack. exercising longer or harder than usual without eating some extra food.
If you don't eat, your blood sugar levels are lower and medication may drop them even more, which can lead to hypoglycemia. Hypoglycemia can cause you to feel shaky, pass out, or even go into a coma. When you “break” your fast by eating, you may also be more likely to develop too-high blood sugar levels.
Hypoglycemia can occur with malnutrition and starvation when you don't get enough food, and the glycogen stores your body needs to create glucose are used up. An eating disorder called anorexia nervosa is one example of a condition that can cause hypoglycemia and result in long-term starvation.
The dawn phenomenon
In the early hours of the morning, hormones, including cortisol and growth hormone, signal the liver to boost the production of glucose, which provides energy that helps you wake up. This triggers beta cells in the pancreas to release insulin in order to keep blood glucose levels in check.
Drinking water regularly may rehydrate the blood, lower blood sugar levels, and reduce diabetes risk ( 20 , 21 ). Keep in mind that water and other zero-calorie drinks are best. Avoid sugar-sweetened options, as these can raise blood glucose, drive weight gain, and increase diabetes risk ( 22 , 23 ).
Some studies suggest that drinking coffee — whether caffeinated and decaffeinated — may actually reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes. If you already have diabetes, however, the impact of caffeine on insulin action may be associated with higher or lower blood sugar levels.
The dawn phenomenon is an early-morning rise in blood sugar, also called blood glucose, in people with diabetes. The dawn phenomenon leads to high levels of blood sugar, a condition called hyperglycemia. It usually happens between 4 a.m. and 8 a.m.
Try to go 10 to 12 hours each night without eating, Sheth advises. For instance, if you eat breakfast at 8:30 a.m. every morning, that means capping your nighttime meals and snacks between 8:30 and 10:30 p.m. each night.
Now you can add another reason to take a post-meal stroll – it may lower your blood sugar. That excursion doesn't need to take up a huge amount of your time either: Walking as little as two to five minutes after a meal can do the trick, according to a 2022 study in the journal Sports Medicine.
A diabetes diet is based on eating three meals a day at regular times. This helps you better use the insulin that your body produces or gets through a medication. A registered dietitian can help you put together a diet based on your health goals, tastes and lifestyle.
OMAD Diet Benefit #1: Weight Loss
Being in a fasted state for 23 hours per day keeps 'storage hormones' like insulin (which turns blood sugar into fat) down to a minimum, making getting into fat-burning mode easy. On OMAD, your body will be burning fat for 23 hours a day — and building muscle for one.
The one meal a day (OMAD) diet is a type of intermittent fasting. With OMAD you can eat what you want, but you go without food for longer than with other types of fasting.
Many people with diabetes will describe themselves as feeling tired, lethargic or fatigued at times. It could be a result of stress, hard work or a lack of a decent night's sleep but it could also be related to having too high or too low blood glucose levels.
What should your blood sugar be when you wake up? Whenever possible, aim to keep your glucose levels in range between 70 and 130 mg/dL in the morning before you eat breakfast, and between 70 and 180 mg/dL at other times.
At the same time, intermittent fasting has two noteworthy direct benefits for patients with prediabetes, according to findings of a 2014 study. It lowers blood sugar levels by 3-6% and increases insulin resistance by between 20% and 31%. As such, it helps protect you from developing type 2 diabetes.