The Popular Myth of Intermittent Fasting Debunked 0 11

Intermittent eating, where food intake is limited to a few hours a day, has proven ineffective for improving cardiovascular and metabolic health indicators if the total calorie intake remains unchanged. This conclusion was reached by scientists at the German Institute of Human Nutrition in Potsdam-Rehbruecke, who published their work in Science Translational Medicine (STM).

The experiment involved 31 women with overweight or obesity. For two weeks, one group ate from 08:00 to 16:00, while the other group ate from 13:00 to 21:00, but both groups consumed the same number of calories. Despite strict dietary control and a high level of adherence to the regimen, the researchers found no significant changes in insulin sensitivity, blood sugar levels, cholesterol, or inflammatory markers.

The only effect observed was a slight adjustment in internal biorhythms: participants who ate later went to sleep and woke up a little later. The scientists emphasize that the benefits of intermittent fasting previously documented are likely related not to the timing of meals but to an unintentional reduction in calorie intake.