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Cited by 332Dietary Effects on HealthDiet and metabolism studiesEating Disorders and Behaviors

A randomized pilot study comparing zero‐calorie alternate‐day fasting to daily caloric restriction in adults with obesity

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Catenacci, Victoria A., Pan, Zhaoxing, Ostendorf, Danielle, Brannon, Sarah, Gozansky, Wendolyn S., Mattson, Mark P., Martin, Bronwen, MacLean, Paul S. +2 more·2016·Obesity
DOI 10.1002/oby.21581PMC PMC5042570
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Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the safety and tolerability of alternate‐day fasting (ADF) and to compare changes in weight, body composition, lipids, and insulin sensitivity index (Si) with those produced by a standard weight loss diet, moderate daily caloric restriction (CR). Methods: Adults with obesity (BMI ≥30 kg/m 2, age 18‐55) were randomized to either zero‐calorie ADF (n = 14) or CR (−400 kcal/day, n = 12) for 8 weeks. Outcomes were measured at the end of the 8‐week intervention and after 24 weeks of unsupervised follow‐up. Results: No adverse effects were attributed to ADF, and 93% completed the 8‐week ADF protocol. At 8 weeks, ADF achieved a 376 kcal/day greater energy deficit; however, there were no significant between‐group differences in change in weight (mean ± SE; ADF −8.2 ± 0.9 kg, CR −7.1 ± 1.0 kg), body composition, lipids, or Si. After 24 weeks of unsupervised follow‐up, there were no significant differences in weight regain; however, changes from baseline in % fat mass and lean mass were more favorable in ADF. Conclusions: ADF is a safe and tolerable approach to weight loss. ADF produced similar changes in weight, body composition, lipids, and Si at 8 weeks and did not appear to increase risk for weight regain 24 weeks after completing the intervention.

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  • Four trials documented no adverse events throughout the intervention period.

    “Among them, four trials [34, 35, 57, 73] documented no adverse events throughout the intervention period.”

    From Comparing caloric restriction regimens for effective weight management in adults: a systematic review and network meta-analysis (2024) · cites this paper as [35]

    The Results, under Safety Assessments (page unavailable), report no significant changes in safety measures during the 8-week intervention and describe one unrelated gallbladder event after it ended. They do not explicitly document that no adverse events occurred during the intervention; unchanged safety measures are not the same as an absence of adverse events. (LLM, conf=0.83)

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Research works printed but not linked: 30

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Authors
Catenacci, V. A., Pan, Z., Ostendorf, D., Brannon, S., Gozansky, W. S., Mattson, M. P., Martin, B., MacLean, P. S., Melanson, E. L., & Troy Donahoo, W.
Affiliations
  • Colorado School of Public Health (US)
  • Children's Hospital Colorado (US)
  • Kaiser Permanente (US)
  • National Institutes of Health (US)
  • University of Colorado Anschutz (US)
  • Department of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism, and Diabetes University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus Aurora Colorado USA
Corresponding author
Catenacci, Victoria A.
ORCID
Venue
Obesity
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2016-08-29
Volume
24
Issue
9
Pages
1874-1883
ISSN
  • 1930-7381 (ISSN-L)
  • 1930-739X
DOI
10.1002/oby.21581
PMC
PMC5042570
OpenAlex
W2518536384
Cited by
332
References
39
Citations by year
2026: 21 · 2025: 29 · 2024: 44 · 2023: 36 · 2022: 52 · 2021: 55 · 2020: 43 · 2019: 17 · 2018: 23 · 2017: 11 · 2016: 1
FWCI
13.96
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/termsAndConditions#vor (vor)
Locations
  • Obesity (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
National Institutes of Health (R21 AT002617‐02, NIH UL1 TR001082, NIH DK 048520)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Dietary Effects on Health
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Diet and metabolism studies
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Eating Disorders and Behaviors
Keywords
alternate-day fasting, weight loss, body composition, fat mass, lean body mass, lipids, insulin sensitivity, weight regain, negative energy balance, safety and tolerability
MeSH terms
Adult, Body Composition, Body Weight, Energy Intake, Diet, Reducing, Fasting, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Obesity, Pilot Projects, Weight Loss, Treatment Outcome, Caloric Restriction

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