Translations:Dieting/26/en

Effectiveness

Several diets are effective for short-term weight loss for obese individuals, with diet success most predicted by adherence and little effect resulting from the type or brand of diet. As weight maintenance depends on calorie intake, diets emphasising certain macronutrients (low-fat, low-carbohydrate, etc.) have been shown to be no more effective than one another and no more effective than diets that maintain a typical mix of foods with smaller portions and perhaps some substitutions (e.g. low-fat milk, or less salad dressing). A meta-analysis of six randomized controlled trials found no difference between low-calorie, low-carbohydrate, and low-fat diets in terms of short-term weight loss, with a 2–4 kilogram weight loss over 12–18 months in all studies. Diets that severely restrict calorie intake do not lead to long term weight loss. Extreme diets may, in some cases, lead to malnutrition.