A study reveals that eating all of your meals between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. over the course of three months can result in weight loss of up to one pound.
In 14 weeks, obese adults who ate within an eight-hour window lost an average of 14 pounds (6.3 kg) compared to 9 pounds (4 kg) in a control group who ate whenever they pleased.
Both groups were given expert guidance on how to adhere to a diet and what items to consume, and they were assigned an identical exercise regimen.
According to the researchers, it shows that restricting the length of time we spend eating reduces the number of calories we ingest by default.
The fasted group in the study consumed a daily food intake comparable to one Mars bar less than the non-fasted group.
Jennifer Aniston, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Nicole Kidman, among others, have favored intermittent fasting for years as a popular diet.
In addition to weight loss, the practice has also been associated with increased longevity and a decreased risk of age-related disorders.
The results were deemed encouraging by British specialists, who asked for additional research to determine whether the weight loss and health benefits reported could be maintained over time.
Obesity is a major concern in both the United States and the United Kingdom, with rising healthcare costs for obesity-related malignancies, heart disease, and other illnesses.
In the study, researchers from the University of Alabama administered the same food and exercise regimen to 90 obese American adults.
Eighty percent of the study’s participants were female, had an average age of 43, and had a body mass index (BMI) of 39.6.
A BMI of 40 or over is considered extremely obese.
A nutritionist advised both study groups on how to adhere to the particular weight loss diet, which they were required to follow six days per week.
In addition, they were instructed to exercise for 75 to 150 minutes per week.
Additionally, those on the fasting regimen had lower blood pressure and reported being happier than before the test.
The authors published their findings in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine and stated, “The effects of early-in-the-day time-restricted eating were equivalent to a daily reduction of 214 calories.”
Nearly half (41%) of the fasting group intended to maintain the same diet now that the trial had been completed.
The study was limited, according to the authors, because it focused primarily on females and relied on self-reporting to determine adherence to the diet and activity routines.
Professor Naveed Sattar, an expert in metabolic medicine at the University of Glasgow who was not involved in the study, said, “This is interesting and encouraging, but it is a very small trial with short follow-up, so longer-term trials over a year or longer are required to determine if individuals can maintain this behavior and maintain all reported short-term benefits.”
Professor Peter Hajek, an expert in health behavior from the Queen Mary University of London, stated that the study adds to a body of research demonstrating that fasting can help achieve short-term advantages.
“This modest trial provides more evidence that time-restricted eating can contribute to short-term (14-week) weight loss when combined with caloric restriction,” he said.
However, he emphasized that uncertainties remained regarding the diet’s viability and advocated for larger investigations.
‘Time-restricted-eating is an extraordinarily basic and feasible intervention that may have greater potential for long-term viability than the majority of alternative treatments,’ he explained.
Now, a large-scale, well-designed trial of time-restricted eating on its own with long-term follow-up is required.
Contrary to the conclusions of a Chinese study on intermittent fasting released in April, which concluded that the popular diet plan was no more effective than calorie restriction, the current data indicate that intermittent fasting is more beneficial than calorie restriction.
Since the 2010s, celebrities such as Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, and former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, as well as Benedict Cumberbatch, have followed trendy fasting diets.
Jennifer Aniston stated in October 2019 that she skips breakfast and just consumes liquids in the mornings, conserving her eating for the latter half of the day.
According to reports, Benedict Cumberbatch employed the 5:2 intermittent fasting strategy to lose weight for his role as Sherlock in the BBC program.
The NHS recommends against following fad diets and fitness regimens, noting that they are unlikely to be effective in the long run due to the impossibility of sustaining this kind of lifestyle change.
Instead, the NHS recommended that individuals undertake dietary and physical activity modifications that result in a sustained rate of weight loss until they reach a healthy BMI.
The latest statistics reveal that 64 percent of British adults are overweight, making obesity one of the country’s most significant and rising health concerns.
An estimated 73.6% of adults in the United States are either overweight or obese.
It is known that being overweight or obese increases the chance of at least 13 forms of cancer and promotes other harmful illnesses, including high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes.
The NHS estimates that treating obesity and overweight-related health problems costs approximately £6.1 billion annually.
