Browse the evidence

Engaging in any physical activity before pregnancy is associated with a 30% reduction in the odds of developing gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) compared to no activity.

If you are planning to get pregnant, start moving now. You do not need to be an athlete; any regular physical activity before conception can lower your risk of gestational diabetes by about 30% compared to being sedentary. Focus on consistency rather than intensity.

Vegetarian and vegan diets are associated with lower body mass index (BMI) and reduced weight gain over time compared to omnivorous diets.

If you want to manage your weight, adopting a plant-based diet can help. Vegetarians and vegans tend to have a lower BMI and gain less weight over time than meat-eaters. Focus on whole plant foods like fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains.

Postpartum weight loss interventions combining diet and exercise, or diet alone, significantly reduce body weight compared to usual care, whereas exercise alone does not produce significant weight loss.

For postpartum weight loss, combining diet with exercise or using diet alone is effective, but exercise alone is not. Focus on creating an energy deficit through dietary changes, as exercise alone did not result in significant weight loss in the reviewed trials. These interventions do not appear to negatively impact breastfeeding or infant growth.

Adherence to the DASH diet is associated with greater weight loss and weight maintenance compared to standard diets, particularly when combined with behavioral interventions.

Follow the DASH diet principles: eat more fruits, vegetables, and low-fat dairy, and less red meat and sugar. This approach helps with both weight loss and keeping the weight off, especially when combined with behavioral strategies like tracking intake.

Higher consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) is positively associated with increased body weight and BMI in both children and adults, based on prospective cohort studies and randomized controlled trials.

To manage weight, reduce or eliminate sugar-sweetened beverages. The evidence shows a consistent positive link between SSB intake and weight gain/BMI in both children and adults. Replacing SSBs with water or other non-caloric beverages is a recommended public health strategy.

Consuming home-cooked meals more than five times per week is associated with a lower likelihood of having an overweight BMI and excess body fat, independent of dietary quality improvements.

Eat home-cooked main meals more than five times a week. This habit is linked to a significantly lower likelihood of being overweight or having excess body fat, even when accounting for the nutritional quality of the food itself.

Physical activity reduces the risk of obesity by preventing weight gain and aiding in the maintenance of weight loss, with 45–60 minutes of moderate-intensity activity daily likely necessary for prevention.

To prevent obesity, aim for 45–60 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity every day. If you are trying to lose weight, include regular physical activity in your program, as it is more effective at maintaining weight loss than diet alone.

Caloric restriction in humans improves metabolic health by reducing visceral adipose tissue, intramyocellular lipid content, and inflammatory markers, although long-term insulin sensitivity benefits may diminish after two years.

Sustained caloric restriction can reduce visceral fat and inflammation. However, be aware that insulin sensitivity improvements may plateau after two years, and the effort required is high.

Creatine supplementation improves performance in short-duration, high-intensity anaerobic exercises (≤30s) by facilitating faster ATP regeneration.

If you do sprinting, interval training, or sports with short bursts of effort, creatine can help you perform slightly better (around 7.5% improvement) by helping your muscles regenerate energy faster. It won't help much with long-distance running.

Achieving a weight loss of 5% or more through lifestyle intervention significantly reduces the relative risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 69% compared to maintaining weight in high-risk individuals.

If you are at high risk for type 2 diabetes, aim to lose at least 5% of your body weight through lifestyle changes. This study found that achieving this specific weight loss target reduced your risk of developing diabetes by 69% compared to those who maintained their weight. This was achieved through an average of 3 counseling visits over a year focusing on diet and exercise.

Achieving a 5-10% body weight reduction through lifestyle modification (diet and physical activity) significantly improves serum liver enzymes, reduces hepatic steatosis, and can improve histological features of NASH.

Aim to lose 5-10% of your body weight through a combination of a balanced, calorie-controlled diet and regular moderate exercise (like walking). You do not need to achieve massive weight loss to see improvements in liver enzymes and fat content. Focus on sustainable lifestyle changes and behavioral strategies rather than drastic, short-term diets.

Excessive gestational weight gain (GWG) in women with GDM increases the risk of adverse outcomes including hypertensive disorders, cesarean section, and large for gestational age (LGA) babies, and calorie restriction (30-33%) may be necessary for obese women who have already reached recommended weight gain.

If you are obese and have GDM, monitor your weight gain closely. If you reach the recommended limit, you may need to stabilize your weight with a moderate calorie reduction (30-33%) to improve blood sugar and reduce risks.

In obese type II diabetic patients, greater caloric restriction (400 kcal/day) improves fasting glucose and insulin sensitivity more than moderate restriction (1,000 kcal/day) when weight loss is held constant.

For obese type II diabetics, stricter caloric restriction (e.g., 400 kcal/day) provides superior improvements in blood sugar and insulin sensitivity compared to moderate restriction (1,000 kcal/day), even if the amount of weight lost is the same. This suggests that the act of restricting calories has metabolic benefits beyond just losing weight.

Modest weight loss of 5% to 10% of initial body weight significantly improves glucose intolerance, Type II diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia.

You do not need to lose a massive amount of weight to see major health benefits. Aiming for just 5% to 10% of your current body weight can significantly improve your blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels. Focus on this modest, achievable target first.

Total energy expenditure (volume) is a stronger predictor of improvements in exercise capacity and health parameters than exercise intensity alone; therefore, prescribing exercise based on total energy expenditure is more effective than focusing solely on intensity.

Don't obsess over how hard you are working; focus on how much total work you are doing. Whether you walk briskly for 60 minutes or jog for 30 minutes, if the total energy burned is similar, your heart health benefits will be similar. Aim for 1000-2000 kcal of exercise per week, spread across several days. If you are short on time, higher intensity might help you reach that volume faster, but it is not strictly required if you can exercise longer.

GLP-1 receptor agonists promote weight loss, with short-acting formulations (exenatide twice daily) often producing greater weight reduction than once-weekly formulations (exenatide once weekly, albiglutide, dulaglutide).

GLP-1 drugs are effective for weight loss. Short-acting versions (taken twice daily) tend to cause more weight loss than once-weekly versions. If weight loss is your primary goal, discuss short-acting options with your doctor. Be prepared for potential nausea, which often improves over time.

A combined dietary and exercise intervention produces significant weight loss (mean 18.8 lb) in older obese adults with knee osteoarthritis, whereas exercise alone yields minimal weight loss (4.0 lb).

For older adults with knee osteoarthritis, combining a supervised exercise program (walking and strength training) with a structured dietary plan leads to significant weight loss. Exercise alone is unlikely to produce substantial weight loss in this population. The goal should be a moderate weight loss (e.g., 15 lbs) over 6 months through cognitive-behavioral dietary strategies and supervised physical activity.

Combined exercise and diet intervention improves specific gait biomechanics (loading rate and maximum braking force) more than exercise alone in older adults with knee osteoarthritis.

Losing weight through diet and exercise can reduce the impact forces on your knees during walking. This may help protect your joint cartilage over time, even if your pain levels are similar to those who just exercise.

Achieving a 7-10% weight loss through intensive lifestyle modification (diet, exercise, and cognitive-behavioral therapy) is the most effective non-surgical intervention for resolving nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and reducing liver fibrosis in NAFLD patients.

To reverse fatty liver disease and NASH, you must lose 7-10% of your body weight. This is best achieved through a structured program combining a daily caloric deficit (500-750 kcal), at least 200 minutes of weekly physical activity (mix of aerobic and resistance), and cognitive-behavioral strategies to maintain habits. Focus on consistency over perfection, use meal planning to reduce decision fatigue, and track your weight weekly. This approach is more effective than any current medication.

Maintaining high levels of habitual physical activity (defined as meeting or exceeding Health and Human Services recommendations of ~150 minutes/week of moderate activity) over a 20-year period significantly attenuates age-related weight gain in young adults transitioning to middle age, with a more pronounced effect in women.

To prevent age-related weight gain, aim to maintain a consistent level of physical activity equivalent to at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week. This study shows that maintaining this level over 20 years, particularly for women, significantly reduces the amount of weight gained as you transition from young adulthood to middle age. While men may experience some compensatory increase in appetite, the net effect of maintaining this activity level is still a substantial reduction in weight gain compared to being sedentary.

Intermittent energy restriction (2 days/week of 500-600 kcal) is clinically equivalent to continuous energy restriction (1200-1500 kcal/day) for improving glycemic control (HbA1c) in patients with type 2 diabetes over 12 months.

If you have type 2 diabetes, eating very little (500-600 calories) on just two days a week can lower your blood sugar (HbA1c) just as effectively as eating less every single day. However, you must work with your doctor to adjust diabetes medications, especially insulin or sulfonylureas, to avoid low blood sugar, particularly in the first few weeks.

Low energy availability (EA), defined as inadequate energy intake relative to exercise energy expenditure, is the primary trigger for Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S), leading to compromised physiological processes including menstrual dysfunction, bone stress injuries, and impaired sports performance.

If you are an athlete training hard, you must eat enough to cover your exercise energy expenditure plus your body's basic needs. If you consistently eat less than this, you risk menstrual dysfunction, bone stress injuries, and lower performance. Do not rely on feeling 'fine'; use validated screening tools like the LEAF-Q if you are female, and consult a sports dietitian to ensure your energy intake matches your training load.

Moderate to vigorous physical activity attenuates the obesity risk associated with the FTO gene risk alleles, reducing the effect size by approximately 30% in adults.

If you carry the FTO risk gene, regular moderate-to-vigorous physical activity is your most powerful tool. It can reduce your genetic risk for obesity by about 30%. You do not need to be an elite athlete; consistent activity is sufficient to counteract this specific genetic predisposition.

Behavioral interventions involving caloric restriction, dietary restructuring, and moderate-intensity physical activity are effective in reducing weight and preventing further weight gain in patients with schizophrenia.

Start with small, manageable changes: reduce calories by 500-750 per day, eat more fiber and less fat, and aim for 24 minutes of moderate exercise daily. Consistency is key, and working with a professional who understands schizophrenia can help overcome executive function challenges.