German scientists say intermittent fasting is not superior to normal diets



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Is this the end of the hottest diet trend of 2018?

As part of the largest study of intermittent fasting to date, researchers at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the Heidelberg University Hospital conducted a study called HELENA. This collaborative study showed that intermittent fasting was by no means superior to conventional calorie restriction diets.

"There are actually only a few smaller studies of intermittent fasting to date, but they have had remarkably positive effects on metabolism. health, "says Ruth Schübel from DKFZ. "It made us curious and we wanted to know if these effects could also be demonstrated in a larger group of patients over a prolonged period."

As such, Schübel and his team examined 150 participants in the 39, study making overweight and obesity for one year. as part of the HELENA study. But before going into the details of the procedure, intermittent fasting is essentially a diet program in which participants feast in an eight hour niche and then fast for the next sixteen hours. These times may vary, but the "16: 8" diet is essentially the most popular diet, next to the "5: 2" variant.

The supposed result is often weight loss without the effect of yo-you and a change in metabolism resulting in weight loss. health benefits. However, the German Nutrition Society (DGE) disputes this. They warned the public that intermittent fasting was not suitable for long-term weight regulation and added that there was not enough data to badess the long-term effects of the diet.

Enter the last big study. The subjects were divided into three groups. Group 1 was on a conventional caloric restriction diet that reduced their daily caloric intake by 20%. Group 2 followed the 5: 2 intermittent fasting plan which also saw its calorie intake reduced by 20% over a full week. The third group, known as the control group, did not follow a specific diet, but had to follow a balanced diet, in accordance with the recommendations of the DGE.

RELATED: All you need to know about intermittent fasting. In 5 minutes

Once the diet period ended, the researchers continued to track the weight and health status of each participant for the next 38 weeks.

The result?

Both diet models showed the same level of improvement in health. status – intermittent fasting is nothing special.

"The participants in the group, body weight and, with that, visceral fat or unhealthy belly fat, were lost and extra fat from the liver was reduced," Schübel reported. 19659002] In addition, the study also revealed results showing that there was no difference between metabolic values, biomarkers or gene activities between the two regimes. To put it bluntly, the HELENA study eliminates the euphoric expectations of intermittent fasting.

"In addition, it seems easier for some people to be very disciplined for two days instead of counting calories and limiting food every day." Tilman Kühn, lead scientist of the trial. "But in order to maintain the new body weight, people must also permanently adopt a balanced diet in accordance with the recommendations of the DGEs," he added.

What exactly does this mean? The diet you follow does not matter if you choose a method and you stick to it in the long run to see the benefits.

"The same evidence is also suggested in a recent study comparing low-carbohydrate diets with low carbohydrate diets. fat diets, that is, reduce carbohydrates compared to reducing fat intake while having a balanced diet, "Kühn said. This study showed that the subjects also had similar results with two different dieting methods.

Now that your bubble has burst, scientists say it's time to accept the fact that any form of reliable diet can be beneficial for the body. Just do not think yours is better than someone else 's.

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