Myth: Eating after 8:00 p.m. Makes You Fat...

Eating after a certain hour won't necessarily mean you'll pack on pounds, just as staying out after midnight won’t turn you into a pumpkin. This Cinderella-esque fat fairy tale continues to exist, but the bottom line is that your metabolism doesn't know what time it is!  Skip the mad rush to consume as much food as you can before the clock strikes 8:00. Calories are calories, no matter when you eat them, but what does matter is what and how much of it you eat. Late-night snacking gets a bad rap because often the foods that are consumed late at night are calorie-dense foods (chips, ice cream, pizza, and other junk food) and may be in excess calories to your daily caloric needs, which translates to weight gain.