Calorie Counting Outperforms Fasting Diets When It Comes To Weight Loss

Nikki Attkisson | Last Updated : June 18, 2021

Fasting diets were all the rage these days but new study findings show they’re no safer than calorie restriction alone. A multinational panel of scientists found that individuals who merely reduced their calorie intake by 25 percent lost the greatest bodyweight and fatty tissues after 3 weeks of diet when contrasted to 2 categories that used various periodic fasting regimes.

Calorie Counting Outperforms Fasting Diets When It Comes To Weight Loss

There were also no changes in outcomes in terms of cardiovascular health, metabolic or fat tissue cell proliferation, indicating that fasting has no underlying advantages.

“In terms of total fat reduction, regular diet might be better successful than periodic fast” stated senior research fellow James Betts, a director of metabolic physiology at the University of Bath’s Centre for Nutrition, Fitness, and Metabolic in England.

Calorie Counting Outperforms Fasting Diets When It Comes To Weight Loss

Fasting meals allow individuals to skip meals on particular days of the week and at specified times of each day. This clinical study looked into the benefits of an alternate-day irregular fast schedule, wherein individuals fasted 1 day and then eat up to double their normal calorie intake the following. The research was reported in the journal Science Translational Medicine on June 16th.

Scientists gathered 36 lean volunteers and divided them into 3 subgroups of 12. One subgroup just cut their daily calorie intake by 25%. The next ate 150 percent of their usual calorie 1 day and fasting the very next, while the third ate 200 percent of its energy intake each day, fasted on different days.

The subgroup that followed a clean diet dropped its most fat after 3 weeks, with a typical fat reduction of roughly 3.5 pounds.

The subgroup that did irregular fasting every day and ate 150 percent of their normal diet lost weight, with a mean weight burning of 1.5 pounds. There were no substantial weight losses in the subgroup that fasted but instead ate twice as much as normal.

The dieters also had no advantages in terms of cholesterol, sugar levels, or insulin sensitivity, according to the findings. 2 nutritionists in the United States who were not engaged in the study agree with the results.

Scientists discovered that those on a fast regimen were less energetic than they were when they began diet which could be one reason they didn’t lose fat.

“They just seem to reduce their energy level a little,” Betts added. “This is absolutely anything to be careful of on a dieting.” If you adopt irregular fasting make an effort to incorporate chances for daily activity into your daily routine.”

When starting an alternate fast regimen, anyone who is hypoglycemic (low blood sugar), pregnant, or has chronic medical concerns must consult with their physician and a dietician, according to Diekman. “It’s not easy to get into an irregular fast habit,” she remarked. “As a society, we are used to consuming whenever we are hungry. Even if the need isn’t for food, we nevertheless feel compelled to act.

“Moving to meals and snacks timing necessitates control, food tracking, modifying diet to family, work, and social situations, as well as an evaluation to verify nutritional requirements, are satisfied,” Diekman said.


Nikki Attkisson

With over 15 years as a practicing journalist, Nikki Attkisson found herself at Powdersville Post now after working at several other publications. She is an award-winning journalist with an entrepreneurial spirit and worked as a journalist covering technology, innovation, environmental issues, politics, health etc. Nikki Attkisson has also worked on product development, content strategy, and editorial management for numerous media companies. She began her career at local news stations and worked as a reporter in national newspapers.

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