The problem with going long periods of time without eating is two-fold:

• We tend to overeat at our next meal when we go too long without eating
• Our metabolism is healthier when it is getting a more regular, consistent intake.  Think of your metabolism as a fire – the more fuel we give to the fire, the more it burns.  If we don’t give fuel to the fire often enough, the fire dies out

So, if a meal will be more than 5 hours apart (such as lunch at noon and dinner at 6pm), consider getting a snack in the middle of the afternoon to break up that chunk of time. But be sure it's a healthy snack, so if you need some ideas, check out my earlier blog post on heart-healthy snack ideas.