Summary
This 12-month randomised controlled trial compared time-restricted eating (8 a.m.–4 p.m. window) combined with calorie restriction to daily calorie restriction alone in 139 patients with obesity. Time-restricted eating resulted in a mean weight loss of 8.0 kg compared to 6.3 kg with daily restriction, but this 1.8 kg difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.11), and secondary outcomes including metabolic risk factors showed no substantial differences between groups.
Regional applicability
The findings suggest that time-restricted eating offers no additional metabolic or weight-loss benefit over conventional calorie restriction for patients with obesity in the UK, potentially informing clinical practice guidelines and weight management counselling. However, the study population was Chinese and may have different baseline metabolic characteristics or dietary patterns than UK populations.
Key measures
Primary outcome: change in body weight from baseline at 12 months. Secondary outcomes: waist circumference, BMI, body fat, lean mass, blood pressure, metabolic risk factors, adverse events.
Outcomes reported
The study measured changes in body weight, waist circumference, body mass index, body fat, lean mass, blood pressure, and metabolic risk factors over 12 months in patients with obesity randomised to time-restricted eating or daily calorie restriction.
Funding & declared interests
Funding: National Key Research and Development Project
Extracted verbatim from the paper’s funding, acknowledgements and conflict-of-interest sections — shown as neutral provenance, not a judgement on the research.
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