If you are on a diet, you must have fixed your cheat meals or days to give in to your temptations. When on a diet, it is okay to indulge in cheat meals once in a while as they keep you motivated to meet your weight loss goals. However, one has to be careful and keep checks on how much they consume at a time while indulging, as cheat meals are likely to turn into binge eating sessions, which may end up doing harm to the body.
According to a study, published in the Journal Nutrients, consumption of excessive dietary fat for several days or weeks may reduce whole-body insulin sensitivity and impair glycaemic control. However, individuals who indicate binge eating behaviour over-consume for much shorter periods of time.
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The study was conducted in an attempt to determine the effect of a single day of high-fat overfeeding on whole-body insulin sensitivity.
For the study, fifteen young, healthy adults participated and underwent blood sugar test before and after consuming a high-fat diet for one day. The high-fat diet comprised 68% of total energy, and high-energy (78% greater than daily requirements). As part of the study, the Matsuda insulin sensitivity index was calculated and fasting and postprandial plasma concentrations of glucose, insulin, non-esterified fatty acids, and triglyceride were measured.
As per the findings of the study, consuming high-fat diet for one day decreased the whole-body insulin sensitivity by 28%. The findings suggest that just one day of overfeeding on high-fat food can put a healthy adult at risk of developing diabetes.