A recent study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association found that reducing calories is better than intermittent fasting for weight loss.
The study was conducted by researchers led by Wendy L. Bennett, Assistant Professor at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, and lasted for 6 years, and was published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, and written about by the “EurekAlert” website.
The researchers found that the frequency and size of meals was a stronger factor in losing or gaining weight than the time between the first and last meal.
The first meal to the last meal
The study assessed the relationship between the time from the first meal to the last meal and weight change. Approximately 550 adults (18 years or older) from 3 health systems in Maryland and Pennsylvania with electronic health records were enrolled in the study.
The research team created a mobile app for participants to catalog their sleeping, eating and waking time over a 24-hour period.
Based on the sleeping and eating timings each day recorded in the mobile app, the researchers were able to measure:
- The time from the first meal to the last meal each day.
- The time interval from waking up to the first meal.
- The time interval from the last meal to sleep.
Findings found by data analysis:
- Meal timing was not associated with weight change during the 6-year follow-up period. This includes the period from the first meal to the last meal, from waking up to the first meal, from the last meal to falling asleep and the total duration of sleep.
- The total daily number of large meals (estimated at more than 1,000 calories) and medium meals (estimated at 500 to 1,000 calories) were each associated with weight gain over 6 years of follow-up, while small meals (estimated at less than 500 calories) were associated with a decrease in weight gain. the weight.
- The average time from the first meal to the last meal was 11.5 hours. The average time from waking up to the first meal was 1.6 hours. While the average time from the last meal to sleep was 4 hours, and the average sleep duration was 7.5 hours.
Bennett said that although previous studies have indicated that intermittent fasting may improve body rhythms and regulate metabolism, this study in a large group with a wide range of body weights did not detect this association.
Although the study found that meal frequency and total calories were stronger risk factors for weight change than meal timing, the findings can’t prove direct cause and effect.
What is intermittent fasting?
“intermittent fasting” or regulating eating times; It is a diet that depends on the timing of eating. With intermittent fasting, you only eat at a specific time, and you fast a certain number of hours every day.
There are different ways to perform intermittent fasting, but they all depend on choosing regular times for eating and fasting. For example, you may try to eat only 8 hours each day and fast the rest of the time, or you may choose to eat only one meal a day, twice a week, and there are many different timings for intermittent fasting.
Intermittent fasting plans
One of the intermittent fasting systems is to limit food intake to one period of 6 to 8 hours each day. It is called “16/8” fasting, which means eating for 8 hours and fasting for 16 hours.
Another method, known as the “2/5” approach, involves eating regularly 5 days a week, with the last two days limiting one meal to 500-600 calories.