EVENING EATING AND SUBSEQUENT LONG-TERM WEIGHT CHANGE IN A NATIONAL COHORT

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association of proportion of daily energy co nsumed in the evening with weight change over 10 y of follow-up. DESIG N: The data used were from the First National Health and Nutrition Exa mination Survey (NHANES 1, 1971-75) Epidemiologic Follow-up Study (NHE FS, 1982-84). The analytic cohort included 2580 men and 4567 women age d 25-74 y at baseline (NHANES 1, 1971-75). The proportion of energy co nsumed in the evening (after 5 pm) was estimated from a 24 h dietary r ecall obtained at baseline. Weight change was defined as the differenc e between the follow-up and baseline weights. RESULTS: Mean+/-s.e. of percent energy from evening food intake was 46+/-0.29 in the analytic cohort. After adjustment for multiple covariates, percent energy from evening food intake and weight change were unrelated in both men and w omen. CONCLUSION: Extent of evening eating was not a significant predi ctor of 10 y weight change in the NHEFS cohort.