Doctors warn of risks of high-sugar, high-fat foods just before bed

Doctors and patients from Cathay General Hospital are warning of the risks of rich food just before bed. Just before sleep, our bodies find it especially hard to handle foods high in fat and sugar. Despite advanced treatments for cardio problems, the heart is fragile. Doctors advise the public to find a less sweet treat to snack on when feeling hungry late at night.

Now 76, Mr. Chen suffered a heart attack five years ago. He ate three healthy meals a day, and would walk a solid 5,000 steps daily. But for at least 20 years, he had enjoyed a sweet snack before bed most evenings.

Mr. Chen
Survived heart attack
My habit used to be to eat dinner late, and then have a dessert, maybe coffee. Less than two hours after eating, I would go to bed. Then one day I couldn''t get up from the sofa. My wife took my blood pressure and it was very high. She felt it was an emergency and rang 119 to get me to the hospital. The doctors immediately said, "Take him to the operating room."

Dr. Chen Chieh-yu
Cathay General Hospital
Our bodies find it hard to digest sweet foods just before sleep. Over the long term they can cause blockages in the arteries of our heart. These foods turn into fatty deposits or cholesterol deposits on the arterial walls. So we generally advise patients not to eat sugary or fatty foods less than two hours before going to bed.

This doctor warns that the trans fats and refined carbs in sugary foods can gradually cause the blood to thicken. That can lead to a heart attack out of the blue, or cause chronic coronary heart disease. Sugar is especially hard to digest before bed, and can seriously damage the heart.

Dr. Chen Chieh-yu
Cathay General Hospital
If you''re really hungry, we recommend finishing your food at least two hours before sleep. If you''re hungry again, perhaps drink dairy or soy milk, something not quite so sweet or fatty.

Mr. Chen was given a cardiac catheterization. But still he suffered from persistent angina, and grew short of breath when walking or climbing stairs. A treatment called shock wave lithotripsy helped his heart to regenerate. But still he would counsel his friends to wean themselves off the dessert.