Many people who want to lose their extra weight have started to resort to the 5:2 diet, especially in recent years. Within the scope of this diet, also known as intermittent fasting, people can eat whatever they want, provided that they do not miss more than 5 days a week. But they only consume 25% of their usual calorie diet for two days a week. In other words, 500 – 600 calories are consumed on average two days a week.
Some of the research to date has revealed that this type of diet is not advantageous over the traditional diet for long-term weight loss. However, some studies have shown that this type of diet gives better results than the traditional diet. The result of one of the studies supporting the 5:2 diet was also published recently.
300 people were divided into 3 groups:
In their new study, researchers from Queen Mary University in the UK have revealed a reason that might lead people to an intermittent fasting diet. In the study conducted with 300 obese people, three groups were examined. The first group followed the traditional supervised diet, the second group followed the unsupervised 5:2 diet, and the third group followed the 5:2 supervised diet. In the consulted groups, the participants could ask questions to the experts and get support from them.
The three groups, followed for one year, showed the results of the study when one year was completed. Average weight loss was observed in each group. 15% of the participants in the traditional diet group lost at least 5% of their body weight.
Participants in the 5:2 group lost more weight than on the traditional diet. While at least 18% of those in the unsupervised group lost 5% of their body weight, this rate was much higher in the counseled group. Of the group that followed the 5:2 diet with their counsel, 28% lost at least 5% of weight. It was also found that those in the 5:2 group were more willing to continue the diet. The study showed how effective the 5:2 diet can be under supervision.