The myth that says that gradual weight loss is better than crash diets to keep weight down in the long term has been disproven by a new study. Researchers at the University of Melbourne performed a study to explore the common-held belief that gradual weight loss made a difference when it was time to maintain the weight - and the results showed that nope, not really.
There's a long-standing idea that gradual weight loss means more stability when it's time to maintain weight after a diet, which is to say that those who go through slow paced diets are more likely to keep their bodies at a healthier weight through the years.
However, it seems this is not the case, as a study published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology called "The effect of rate of weight loss on long-term weight management: a randomized controlled trial" suggests that, although long-term weight loss remains elusive regardless of the diet, short-term weight loss is actually more likely with rapid weight loss.
For the study, the Australian researchers took a random sample of 204 obese adults, giving them either a 12-week rapid weight loss diet (with Nestlé's Optifast) or a gradual weight loss diet of 36 weeks. For both of the diets, the goal was a 15% weight loss. So, the participants who had managed to lose at least 12.5% of their weight were then put forth to the next phase of the study, which meant a 144-week maintenance diet.
In the maintenance phase of the study, results showed that there was no significant difference between either of the two groups. However, it was discovered that those who had gone through a fast diet were more likely to achieve the weight loss goal than those who went through the gradual weight loss one: 81% versus 50% of the people.
Katrina Purcell, one of the leading researchers in the study, said in a press release: "Across the world, guidelines recommend gradual weight loss for the treatment of obesity, reflecting the widely held belief that fast weight loss is more quickly regained. However, our results show that achieving a weight loss target of 12.5% is more likely, and drop-out is lower, if losing weight is done quickly."
