Research
Energy balance
Weight loss via calorie restriction alone, without resistance training, leads to a loss of appendicular lean mass and an increased prevalence of sarcopenia in breast cancer survivors.
If you lose weight through diet alone, you risk losing muscle mass, which can lead to sarcopenia. To preserve muscle, combine calorie restriction with resistance training.
ModerateRefutesMEDIUM confidence
Of note, both diets also resulted in reduced appendicular lean mass and a significant increase in the prevalence of sarcopenia (10%, P = 0.04).
Why this rating
RCT, small sample size, but clear statistical finding on body composition.
Source
Changes in Body Weight and Metabolic Indexes in Overweight Breast Cancer Survivors Enrolled in a Randomized Trial of Low-Fat vs. Reduced Carbohydrate Diets
Cynthia A. Thomson et al. · Nutrition and Cancer · 2010
DOI 10.1080/01635581.2010.513803
rct · n=40Cited 92×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- For overweight breast cancer survivors, both low-fat and reduced-carbohydrate diets produce equivalent significant weight loss and metabolic improvements when energy intake is restricted, indicating that caloric deficit drives outcomes more than macronutrient composition.Moderate
- Reduced carbohydrate diets specifically lower triglycerides, whereas low-fat diets do not significantly reduce triglycerides despite similar weight loss.Moderate
Related findings · Energy balance
- Achieving a total body weight loss of 10-15% (or >10-15 kg) through Total Diet Replacement (TDR) induces remission of Type 2 Diabetes in individuals with short-duration disease.Strong
- Bariatric surgery is superior to medical management alone for inducing significant long-term weight loss, remission of type 2 diabetes, and reduction in mortality for patients with BMI ≥ 40 or ≥ 35 with comorbidities.Strong
- Achieving type 2 diabetes remission requires significant weight loss (≥15 kg) via major caloric restriction, independent of macronutrient composition.Strong
This is one finding among thousands. Every one is graded and traced to its source, so you can see what the evidence actually supports. Browse the research →