Evening snacks without increased nighttime caloric intake decrease fasting glucose in pregnant women with pregestational diabetes mellitus

Mar 15, 2026Nutrition (Burbank, Los Angeles County, Calif.)

Evening snacks that don’t add extra calories lower fasting blood sugar in pregnant women with pre-existing diabetes

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Abstract

Higher caloric consumption between 6 p.m. and 5:59 a.m. is associated with increased fasting glycemia in pregnant women with diabetes mellitus.

Increased caloric intake at night correlates with higher fasting glucose levels in the second and third trimesters.
Consuming an evening snack before dinner, without increasing overall nighttime calories, is linked to better glucose control in the second trimester.
Later breakfast and morning snack times in the third trimester are associated with lower levels of glycated hemoglobin.

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OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association between chrononutrition and glycemic control parameters throughout the pregnancy in women with diabetes mellitus (DM).

METHODS: Cross-sectional study with 117 pregnant women with pregestational DM. Food consumption was assessed using 24-h dietary recalls in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy. Chrononutrition parameters included number of eating episodes, eating pattern, mealtimes, and caloric intake. Glycemic control was measured by fasting plasma glucose and glycated hemoglobin. Multivariate linear regression models examined the associations.

RESULTS: Higher caloric consumption between 6 p.m. and 5.59 a.m. was associated with increased fasting glycemia in the second (ß adjusted = 23.77, P = 0.008) and third (P = 0.027; ß adjusted = 0.05, P = 0.006) trimesters, but consuming evening snack before dinner, without increasing nighttime calories, was associated with better glucose control in the second trimester (P = 0.022). In the third trimester, later breakfast followed by later morning snack was associated with lower glycated hemoglobin (P = 0.049; ß adjusted = -0.30, P = 0.012).

CONCLUSION: Chrononutritional parameters and caloric distribution influence glycemic control in pregnant women with DM. These findings suggest that individualized nutritional care should include advising pregnant women with DM to consider limiting their nighttime energy intake, consuming an evening snack before dinner, and adjusting their morning meal timing to optimize glycemic control.

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Evening snacks without increased nighttime caloric intake decrease fasting glucose in pregnant women with pregestational diabetes mellitus

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