The claimEvidence A · guideline-tier
Alternate-day fasting beats standard calorie restriction
The evidence
Trepanowski 2017 JAMA IM: alternate-day fasting matched standard CR at 12 months (−6.0% vs −5.3%, NS) but had worse adherence and higher binge-cycle risk.
The mechanism, in brief
Body weight is a metabolic question, not an aesthetic one. Fat distribution shifts insulin sensitivity, cardiovascular event rates, joint load, sleep-disordered breathing, and hormonal axes — none of which depend on what the mirror shows, but on the ratio of visceral fat to muscle.
Sources (1)
- The Global BMI Mortality Collaboration. (2016). Body-mass index and all-cause mortality: Individual-participant-data meta-analysis of 239 prospective studies in four continents. The Lancet, 388(10046), 776–786.