A research study at the Northwestern University, Illinois, found that it is when you eat, not just how you eat, could make a big difference in weight control and weight management.

The study, published Obesity, a journal dedicated to research looking at weight management, found that eating late at night can put on twice as much weight as those who eat at regular, non-late hours. The study is believed to be teh first piece of evidence to suggest that there are wrong times to eat food.

Recent research studies into obesity have centred around the idea that the body's internal clock, called circadian rhythms, though as a point of study this has proven to be difficult.

The team at the Northwest University in Illinois, first struck on the idea of weight loss due to late night eating after observing shift workers who are often over weight.

The study suggests that people should consider eating the most of their daily calories earlier the day.

It seems the age old statement "Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper" could prove to be wise words when it comes to weight management.