Fasting Works, but Not Better Than Eating Healthfully

Short-term fasting, which may involve eating normally for eight hours and fasting for 16, or eating normally for five days and then fasting for two, jump-starts the metabolism and helps people lose weight. But it’s not a better alternative to eating healthfully on a daily basis, according to research published in American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Nov. 26, 2018.

Of 150 overweight and obese participants, one group was given a conventional diet with a 20 percent calorie reduction. The second group was given the 5:2 fasting plan with a 20 percent calorie reduction. The third group served as the control and had no specific dietary plan, but was advised to eat healthfully.

After 38 weeks, results showed that both test groups generated equal amounts of weight reduction and health improvements. Participants who reduced their body weight by 5 percent achieved a 20 percent reduction in abdominal fat and reduced more than a third of the fat in their liver. The purpose of this study was to prove that fasting is not a better option than eating healthfully every day.

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