Intermittent Fasting in Weight Management

Obesity is associated with a variety of medical conditions that adversely affect metabolic and cardiovascular health. In order for health care providers to adequately educate and promote weight management, they need to be aware of the various dietary regimens and the efficacy and adverse effects associated with each. This literature review assesses the efficacy, metabolic benefits, and cardiovascular benefits of both intermittent energy restriction and continuous energy restriction from ten articles found on various databases within the past five years. The findings indicate that although not proven superior or inferior, intermittent energy restriction provides statistically similar results to continuous energy restriction when assessing efficacy of weight loss. There are also similar metabolic and cardiovascular benefits when comparing intermittent energy restriction and continuous energy restriction, although continuous energy restriction may have a benefit in the diabetic population due to potential adverse side effects in diabetics adhering to intermittent energy restriction. The result of this literature review allows providers to recommend an alternative weight management technique in patients who are unsuccessful or unable to adhere to a continuous energy restriction diet.https://commons.und.edu/pas-grad-posters/1152/thumbnail.jp