After Dinner Snacking

I have heard some ideas and would like to know if they are true, or if they conflict, what is the right answer.

I have heard that you should NOT eat after supper.  AND, I have heard that after supper eating is OK, as long as you are still eating in your target calorie range.  Which is right?

I have heard that you should not go to bed hungry.  True, or not true?

I have heard that if you snack after supper, even though its less than desirable, you should have protein and not carbs - that carbs if for energy, and you dont need that before bed so it all goes to "fat."

I have also heard that if you are hungry at bed time, that maybe you aren't getting enough calories during the day. 

I have also heard that you should just go to sleep when you are hungry at night, and forget about it. 

Can someone help me make sense of this?

As long as you are within your calorie target range and as long as you're eating reasonably regularly it doesn't matter at what time you choose to eat. 

Obviously, some commonsense comes into play.  You wouldn't want to eat a very heavy meal right before going to bed because it would probably cause indigestion.  But it doesn't turn to 'fat' just because you're asleep... the body processes food all day and all night.

Going to bed hungry is miserable and uneccessary.  That kind of misplaced martyrdom is what gives losing weight a bad reputation.  Yes, it can mean that you've not eaten enough during the day.  Sometimes it means that your food choices are nutritionally poor and they haven't sustained you for long.  Sometimes you 'just fancy a snack'... that's legitimate as well.   If a slice of toast and cup of tea means you go to bed feeling happy rather than with a growling stomach & gnawing hunger pangs... those extra 100 cals or so were worth it. 

Normally I don't go to bed hungry, because my appetite has practically diminished after dinner. But when I used to go through bad phases going to bed hungry and ravenous it was painful. It was hard to drift off and in the morning I had cramps. I suggest you have some low fat yogurt or cheese on a cracker, those are pretty low GI foods with protein.

takes energy to digest food so eating late will not give a restful sleep..however nothing wrong with something you find okay.  Avoid sugar and salt would be my only caution.

This may require experimenting with different foods that fit into your calorie count...since we all have different metabolism. 

I found I needed something.  So I always had some veggies cut and ready, or had some cheese and crackers, or small bowl of cereal, or glass of whole milk, or small bowl of oat meal...there is more but you see what I mean.

..all worked for me at the beginning of my weight loss program in Jan 2009.  Now with me almost done my program...I find some popcorn or a bowl of cereal is all I want..there is no longer any need!

If you stay up for several hours after dinner, your body will tell you it's hungry because it needs extra energy to keep going.  So if, say, you eat at 6pm, you're likely to be hungry again at 10pm because your body is saying "hey, if you want me to stay awake, you'd better give me some extra fuel."  If that's the case for me, I go to bed and forget about it if I can, or I'll have a little something to eat if I need to stay up later.

I routinely eat a 6oz cup of yogurt when I feel as if I am hungry at night.  As long as I am within my calorie goal, I am fine.  When I start eating the container, well, that is another story.

I find that I function best if I eat dinner 2-3 hours before going to bed, that way I am neither full nor hungry, and I wake up with a good appetite for breakfast. But different things work for different people, you can find yours through trial and error rather than going by cliches and generalisations that end up contradicting each other and confusing you to no end.