Research

Energy balance

A reduced-fat ad libitum diet improves body weight and glucose tolerance in individuals with glucose intolerance, but these benefits are not sustained at 5 years unless the participant maintains high compliance with the dietary intervention.

If you have impaired glucose tolerance, switching to a lower-fat diet can help you lose weight and improve your blood sugar levels for up to three years. However, this benefit fades after five years unless you strictly maintain the diet. To succeed long-term, you need ongoing support, such as regular check-ins or group sessions, to help you stick with the changes against environmental pressures.

GoodQualifiesHIGH confidence
Compared with the control group, weight decreased in the reduced-fat– diet group... the greatest difference was noted at 1 year... diminished at subsequent follow-up... and was no longer present by 5 years... However, the more compliant 50% of the intervention group maintained lower fasting and 2-h glucose at 5 years
Boyd Swinburn et al. · Diabetes Care · 2001

Why this rating

Randomized controlled trial with 5-year follow-up, though attrition and loss to follow-up are noted.

Source

Long-Term (5-Year) Effects of a Reduced-Fat Diet Intervention in Individuals With Glucose Intolerance

Boyd Swinburn et al. · Diabetes Care · 2001

DOI 10.2337/diacare.24.4.619

rct · n=136Cited 240×
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DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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