People on part-time diet lose weight faster, study suggests

PEOPLE on the part-time “5:2” diet lose weight more quickly and are more healthy than those on a consistent, traditional diet, a study suggests.

UK researchers found that 5:2 dieters were able to achieve at least five per cent of their weight loss target within two months while enjoying lower blood pressure and a better ability to clear fat out of their system.

They said the findings indicate the part-time diet may provide better longterm protection for heart disease.

Promoted as the diet which allows “chocolate cake five times a week”, 5:2 first became widely known in the UK in 2012 and has since soared in popularity.

Published in the British Journal of Nutrition Reports, the study divided 27 participants between daily and 5:2 diets. Those on the 5:2 ate normally for five days, with two “fasting” days a week when they consumed only 600 calories. Participants in the other group were advised to eat 600 calories less per day than their estimated requirements for maintaining their weight. This meant that the women ate 1,400 calories and the men 1,900 calories each day.

The 5:2 dieters achieved five per cent weight loss within an average of 59 days, whereas the others took an average of 73 days. The research team at the University of Surrey also found that the participants who followed the 5:2 diet cleared the fat from a meal given to them more efficiently than those who undertook the daily diet.

Dr Rona Antoni, research fellow in nutritional metabolism, said: “As seen in this study, some of our participants struggled to tolerate the 5:2 diet, which suggests that this approach is not suited to everybody; ultimately the key to dieting success is finding an approach you can sustain long-term.”