Dietary patterns are considered central to combating metabolic diseases. However, there is an emerging acceptance that meal timing may be as or more important than the amount or type of food consumed [
43], and combining these approaches may elicit greater benefits [
44]. Surveys conducted between 1977 and 2006 demonstrated that daily “eating occasions” increased in adults and children, with energy intake, particularly from snacking, increasing and the time between “eating opportunities” decreaseing from 3.5 to 3 h [
45]. Circadian rhythms, the 24 h cycles that are part of the body’s internal clock, run in the background to carry out essential functions and processes, including weight regulation. The central clock of the suprachiasmatic nucleus of the hypothalamus controls many circadian rhythms, as well as clocks located in other brain regions and most peripheral tissues [
46]. Chronic circadian rhythm disruption, such as shift work or repetitive late night snacking, is a risk factor for metabolic diseases and both human and animal studies have demonstrated that time-restricted feeding can provide protection from circadian rhythm-induced metabolic disturbances [
44]. Food is a non-photic stimulus that can reset the circadian rhythm by predominantly influencing the peripheral clocks and the timing of ‘when’ the majority of calories are eaten is an important factor [
47]. For example, consuming the majority of calories in the evening or at night is associated with a higher risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, whilst eating main meals earlier in the day is associated with decreased risk for hepatic steatosis [
48]. Alternatively, it may involve restricting your window of eating during the day. Indeed, both early time-restricted eating (from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.) and delayed time-restricted eating (from 12:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.) improved glycaemic response to a test meal, with the early pattern also leading to a decrease in fasting glucose [
49]. Given the profound benefits on strategic meal timing/frequency on chronic disease risk factors such as MS, it is perhaps time to consider including such practices within dietary assessment tools, and, in doing so, help facilitate discussion with an individual about which timing strategy may best suit them.