Time restricted eating is growing in popularity thanks to research showing improvement in key heart and blood sugar markers. However, most studies have focused on how long people fast, not how their fast lines up with their sleep schedule. Northwestern University researchers say its not only how much and what we eat, but when to get the most benefit from time-restricted eating. Their study of middle-age and older adults found extending overnight fast by about two hours, dimming the lights and not eating for three hours before bedtime improved measures of cardiovascular and metabolic health around the clock. Timing the fast period to work with a person’s natural wake-sleep patterns protects cardiovascular health. It’s in the journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology.