New Evidence Casts Doubt on Intermittent Fasting for Weight Loss
A Cochrane Library review of 22 randomized trials involving nearly 2,000 overweight or obese participants found intermittent fasting provides little to no additional weight loss or quality-of-life benefit compared with standard dietary advice or no intervention. The evidence is of limited quality, and while fasting did not show significantly more adverse events, it did not outperform doing nothing for most people.