A doctor and nutritional expert is urging people to stop eating for a specific number of hours overnight to boost their gut health and even strengthen their immune systems. Professor Tim Spector, founder of Zoe Health, says allowing your digestive system proper rest enables it to work optimally.

In a clip posted to his Instagram account, Prof Spector outlined this recommendation as one of his five key strategies for better health. He said that restricting food intake to a particular timeframe enables beneficial microbes to "clean" the intestinal lining.

In the video he said: "Try and have a break, so that you are eating within a 10 or 12-hour window so your microbes get a good night's sleep." Further explaining in the post's caption, he said: "Give your gut a rest - ideally 12 to 14 hours overnight, to allow specific microbes including Akkermansia muciniphila to clean up your gut lining and keep it healthy, which is important for supporting a healthy gut and immune system."

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Akkermansia muciniphila is classified as a mucin degrading bacterium present in the digestive tract. Studies have demonstrated its connection to a reduced risk of health problems including obesity, diabetes, inflammation, and metabolic conditions.

On the Zoe platform, Prof Spector offers additional guidance on providing your gut with downtime. He said: "Try to avoid or limit snacking, and aim to give your gut bugs time to rest overnight.

"At night, there is a whole team of gut microbes that work to clean up your gut lining and keep it healthy. This regular cleaning is important for supporting a healthy gut and immune system. By giving your gut bugs a break, they'll have time to recover to do their job well."

He also shared four other ways to boost your wellbeing, with the first two of these being to eat 30 different plants a week and to eat "the rainbow" - so as much natural colour in your diet as possible. Prof Spector also suggests you have a small amount of fermented food everyday, and that you reduce the amount of ultra-processed foods you eat.