- A new study suggests that intermittent fasting is just as effective as counting calories.
- Researchers compared three groups - one group was subjected to time-restricted eating, another was asked to reduce calories, and a third group made no changes.
- The results showed that both the time-restricted and calorie-reduction eating groups lost weight over a period of 12 months.
A new study has shown that intermittent fasting is just as effective as counting calories when it comes to weight loss.
The yearlong study took place in the US with 90 participants, all older than 20 and classified as obese.
The participants were then broken up into three groups -- one group was asked to reduce their calorie intake by 25% (counting calories), the other was subjected to Time-restricted eating (TRE), a form of intermittent fasting, and asked to only consume meals between noon and 20:00 every day, and the third group was asked to stick to their normal eating and exercise routine.
According to The LA Times, the TRE and the calorie reduction groups both met with dieticians who gave them nutrition advice.
During their 16-hour fasting period, the TRE group was allowed to drink water, tea, coffee or a maximum of two diet fizzy drinks.
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The results
After six months, the TRE group is said to have lost an average of 4kg and the calorie reduction group an average of just over 5kg. For the final six months of the study, the groups were supposed to maintain their weight loss. The TRE group was allowed to extend their eating window by two hours, starting at 10:00, and the calorie reduction group increased calorie intake based on how much energy they were burning during the day.
By the end of the study, the TRE and calorie reduction groups had maintained some of the weight they had lost, while the control group gained just over 1kg.
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Researchers concluded that: "Time-restricted eating is more effective in producing weight loss when compared with control [the gird group who made no changes] but not more effective than CR [the calories reduction group] in a racially diverse population."
"The key takeaway is that you can basically achieve the same amount of energy restriction by counting time instead of counting calories," Krista Varady, a professor of nutrition at the University of Illinois Chicago, said, according to NPR.
Krista, who has studied intermittent fasting for years, says the results indicate TRE can lead to a "natural calorie restriction", and this largely comes down to people having less time to eat after dinner.
"Mainly, we're cutting out, I think, after-dinner snacks."
