Limiting food intake to an eight-hour window each day could help with long-term weight management, according to new research presented at the European Congress on Obesity in Malaga. The study found that overweight and obese individuals who adopted time-restricted eating lost weight and maintained the loss over 12 months.
Lead author Dr Alba Camacho-Cardenosa, from the University of Granada, said: “Our study found that restricting the eating window to eight hours at any time of the day for three months can result in significant weight loss for at least a year. These benefits can be attributed to the 16-hour fasting window rather than the time of eating.”
The study involved 99 participants split into four groups: those eating within a 12-hour or longer window; those restricting eating to eight hours starting before 10am; those starting after 1pm; and those choosing their own eight-hour window. All groups received Mediterranean diet advice. After 12 weeks, the time-restricted groups lost around 3kg to 4kg, compared with 1.4kg in the 12-hour group, and had greater reductions in waist and hip circumferences.
At the one-year mark, the 12-hour group had gained an average of 0.4kg, while the early and late time-restricted groups maintained about 2kg of weight loss. Those who chose their own pattern also maintained some loss, though not statistically significant. Around 85% to 88% of those restricting their eating window adhered to the plan.
Dr Jonatan Ruiz, study co-ordinator, said: “This kind of intermittent fasting appears feasible for adults with overweight or obesity who wish to have a relatively simple way of losing and maintaining weight loss that is less tedious and more time efficient compared with daily calorie counting.” However, he noted that further larger and longer-term studies are needed.
