Does When You Eat Matter?

George L. Blackburn Symposium Features Intermittent Fasting, Circadian Rhythms

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Oct 09, 2019, 09:00 ET

SILVER SPRING, Md., Oct. 9, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Intermittent fasting and circadian timing of food intake will be the focus of a symposium honoring George L. Blackburn, MD, PhD, a pioneering obesity scientist and surgeon, and former president of The Obesity Society.

ObesityWeek Logo (PRNewsfoto/The Obesity Society)

Authors of the studies will present their work in a lecture format followed by a panel discussion at Blackburn Symposium on Intermittent Fasting and Circadian Rhythms—Does When You Eat Matter? The event will be held from 10:30 a.m. – 12:00 noon (PST) on Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2019, in the Mandalay Bay South Convention Center (Mandalay Bay EF), Las Vegas, Nev. The symposium is part of ObesityWeek^® —an international scientific conference featuring world-renowned experts in the field of obesity.

Eric Ravussin, PhD, will serve as chair of the symposium and provide an introduction prior to the session explaining the title of the symposium for this year.

"This symposium honoring Dr. Blackburn is very timely since intermittent fasting and time-restricted feeding are becoming popular topics of discussion and in publications, not only among scientists, but equally in the lay press," said Ravussin. "Some now say, 'watch the clock, not the scale' to maintain an optimal cardiometabolic health."

Frank A. Scheer, PhD, a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Mass., will speak about Circadian Rhythms, Food Timing and Metabolism. Courtney M. Peterson, PhD, will make a presentation on Intermittent Fasting or Circadian Timing of Food Intake. Peterson is an assistant professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

According to experts, recent research provides new insights into the importance not just of what we eat, but also when we eat for glucose control, energy expenditure and metabolic health. These insights are of clinical relevance given the high prevalence of obesity, type 2 diabetes, late-night eating, breakfast skipping, short-fasting durations, irregular meal times, shift work, and sleep and circadian disturbances.

The Obesity Society issued a press release about a research study published online July 24, 2019, in Obesity focused on meal timing strategies such as intermittent fasting or eating earlier in the daytime appear to help people lose weight by lowering appetite rather than burning more calories.

Media representatives interested in covering the Blackburn Symposium onsite need to register for ObesityWeek^®. Registration is free, but a media code is needed. To obtain a media registration code, email TOS Director of Communications Kristin Collins at [email protected].

The Obesity Society (TOS) is the leading organization of scientists and health professionals devoted to understanding and reversing the epidemic of obesity and its adverse health, economic and societal effects. Combining the perspective of physicians and other clinicians, scientists, policymakers and patients, TOS promotes innovative research, education, and evidence-based clinical care to improve the health and well-being of all people with obesity. For more information, visit www.obesity.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

Kristin D. Collins
Director of Communications
The Obesity Society
240-485-1950
[email protected]

SOURCE The Obesity Society