The best fasting diets to help you lose weight

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Humans have been fasting since the dawn of time.

Back in the day, we spent hours without eating, because what we ate depended on what we caught.

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And of course, there was no Lidl or Macci Ds at every corner to tempt us.

Today, many experts in weight loss say that it is essential to return to fasting.

It goes without saying that if you have a history of eating disorders, fasting habit to be for you.

If you do not do it and you can not worry about counting calories or eating certain foods, it can be very helpful to limit how long you are allowed to eat.

But there are so many different fasts that it can be hard to know which one suits you best.

In The Conversation, David Clayton, lecturer in nutrition and exercise physiology at Nottingham Trent Kingdom, explored the three most popular game modes.

The diet 5: 2

This is a popular version of intermittent fasting is where you eat a very low calorie diet (about 500kcal) for two days a week (two days). The other five days, you eat normally.

Research has shown that it is possible to lose weight with this diet; it also improves several markers of health, such as the reduction of glucose and cholesterol levels in the blood.

But it is unlikely that the 5: 2 diet is more effective at losing weight than traditional dieting methods.

Indeed, 5: 2 reduces caloric intake to a similar extent to that of a traditional diet.

It has been proven that consuming very low calories in two consecutive days could improve insulin sensitivity, a risk marker for type 2 diabetes, to a greater extent than traditional dieting.

This approach also leads to a decrease in blood lipids (fatty substances present in the blood) compared to conventional diets.

An important additional benefit of 5: 2 is that you can consume food during the "fasting" period, which allows you to absorb vital nutrients.

Another day of fasting (ADF)

While 5: 2 could be considered a "lifestyle intervention", it is more likely that fasting every other day is used to lose weight quickly.

ADF is often referred to as a "diet every other day" and requires you to alternate daily between an unrestricted diet and a diet with very few calories.

It uses a similar 5: 2 approach, allowing a small meal (usually around 500 kcal) to be consumed on "fasting" days.

Research has shown that ADF can cause considerable weight loss in 8 to 12 weeks, but one of the big problems with ADF is that it is difficult to keep up.

Longer term studies have shown that caloric intake on days of "fasting" gradually increases over time, reducing the caloric deficit achieved and slowing down the rate of weight loss.

Despite this, it is likely that the ADF will result in a greater reduction in caloric intake compared to traditional dieting methods, which should initially lead to greater weight loss.

But it is unlikely that many people stick to ADF in the long run.

Eating Restricted Time (TRE)

TRE involves fasting for long periods (16-20 hours) and consuming all your calories in a certain amount of time.

The most common version of TRE uses a relationship between fasting and 16: 8 feeding (16 hours of fasting and eight hours during which you can eat).

Many people reach this ratio by skipping breakfast, delaying their first meal until noon and eating all food between noon and 8 pm.

Research has shown that caloric intake over a 24-hour period is reduced when people skip breakfast.

Skipping breakfast is unlikely to result in significant weight loss. Skipping breakfast also reduces the effectiveness of insulin to regulate blood sugar after lunch, which indicates a negative effect on insulin sensitivity.

David Clayton

But the number of calories spent during physical activity is also reduced, which will partially or completely eliminate the caloric deficit obtained by skipping breakfast.

So, skipping breakfast is unlikely to result in significant weight loss.

But an alternative approach to TRE has been promising.

A recent study showed that fasting from 14 hours improved insulin sensitivity in a group of pre-diabetic men.

This could be due to an increased natural ability to effectively regulate blood glucose in the morning, due to daily variations in metabolism.

Thus, restricting food intake to a morning feeding window and fasting at night can be a healthier version of the TRE.

And the winner is…

In terms of weight loss, the ADF should lead to the fastest success, but supporting Long-term weight loss can be facilitated by the 5: 2 less intense approach.

There is some evidence that it may be easier to stick to EN, as it may be easier for some people to completely limit food intake than to limit it severely.

But any diet can only work if you stick to it.

It is important to note that most research suggests that intermittent fasting is not better than traditional diet methods.

However, intermittent fasting diets with extended periods of fasting, such as TRE with shorter feeding windows and 5: 2 with two consecutive days of very low calories, may offer additional health benefits.

This article first appeared on The Conversation

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