Intermittent Fasting vs. Calorie Restriction:

🤷‍♀️ Which works better?

A new study compared them in a group of 75 people with type 2 diabetes and obesity.

Here are the highlights:

▪️ Participants were randomly assigned to intermittent fasting (freely eating between noon and 8pm daily) or caloric restriction (25% calorie reduction).

▪️ After 6 months, those doing intermittent fasting had lost twice as much weight on average (-3.56% vs. -1.78%).

▪️ Both groups experienced similar improvements in average blood sugar levels (measured by HbA1C).

Caloric restriction is the norm in diet culture, but it’s hard to follow (this study also showed better adherence to intermittent fasting than calorie restriction), and a LOT more goes into healthy eating and weight loss than just calorie counting.

Intermittent fasting is not for everyone.

This is something I discuss on an individual basis with clients to come up with the best plan for each person.

Give us a like if you learned something new or share to a friend that may find this interesting! ❤️

Reference

Pavlou V, Cienfuegos S, Lin S, et al. Effect of Time-Restricted Eating on Weight Loss in Adults With Type 2 Diabetes: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Netw Open. 2023;6(10):e2339337. [link]

⏰ Intermittent Fasting vs. Calorie Restriction 🥗

Which works better for blood sugar control?

Lots of studies have shown intermittent fasting to be effective for weight loss, but only a few have looked at what happens to blood sugar.

🌟 Most people who want to lose weight are also teetering on the verge of prediabetes or diabetes, so it’s important that we know how blood sugar will respond 🌟

Here’s a new study that compared intermittent fasting to calorie restriction in adults who were at risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

👉👉 Results after 6 months showed that intermittent fasting was more effective at improving glucose tolerance after meals than calorie restriction.

The intermittent fasting protocol went like this:

▪️ 3 days per week of “fasting”

▪️ “Fasting” days allowed for 800-1200 calories to be consumed between 8am and noon

▪️ 4 days per week of unrestricted eating

This was compared to caloric restriction on 7 days per week.

Intermittent fasting is one tool in our toolkit to support our clients in balancing their blood sugar, hormones, and overall health.

Reference

Teong XT, Liu K, Vincent AD, et al. Intermittent fasting plus early time-restricted eating versus calorie restriction and standard care in adults at risk of type 2 diabetes: a randomized controlled trial. Nat Med. 2023;29(4):963-972. [link]