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Intermittent fasting diets may have similar benefits as traditional calorie-restricted diets for weight loss according to an analysis of trial evidence published by The BMJ a day ago.

In fact, alternate day fasting demonstrates more benefits compared with both calorie restriction and other intermittent fasting approaches though the researchers feel longer trials are necessary to substantiate these findings. Intermittent fasting comprises an eating pattern that alternates between periods of eating and fasting on a regular basis.

The researchers analysed the results of 99 randomised clinical trials involving 6,582 adults (average age 45; 66% female) to compare the effect of intermittent fasting diets with continuous energy restriction or unrestricted diets on body weight and cardiometabolic risk factors. Participants had an average body mass index (BMI) of 31 and almost 90% had existing health conditions.

The trials ranged from 3-52 weeks (average 12 weeks) and were of varying quality, but the researchers were able to assess their risk of bias and the certainty of evidence using recognised tools.

Alternate day fasting was the only intermittent fasting diet strategy to show a small benefit in body weight reduction compared with continuous energy restriction (mean difference -1.29 kg).

Alternate day fasting also showed a small reduction in body weight compared with both time restricted eating and whole day fasting (mean difference -1.69 kg and -1.05 kg respectively). However, these differences did not reach the minimally important clinical threshold of at least 2 kg weight loss for individuals with obesity, as defined by the study authors.

According to the World Health Organization in 2022, approximately 2.5 billion adults, 43% of the global adult population, were overweight, and about 890 million (16%) lived with obesity.

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