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A Cochrane Systematic review, Intermittent fasting for adults with overweight or obesity, published today (February 16), that aimed to evaluate the benefits and harms of intermittent fasting versus regular dietary advice, and no intervention or waiting list for adults with overweight or obesity, found that compared to regular dietary advice, intermittent fasting may result in little to no difference in weight loss or quality of life, but the evidence was very uncertain.

The study authors concluded that the interventions produced "no clinically meaningful changes in most of the outcomes" considered in the review, and compared to no intervention or waiting list, intermittent fasting "likely results in little to no difference in weight loss and may result in little to no difference in quality of life or adverse events". However the evidence was "very uncertain". 

The included studies focused on short-term effects of the intervention (up to 12 months), limiting the applicability of the evidence to inform decision-making for longer durations. None of the included studies reported people's satisfaction with intermittent fasting, their diabetes status, or overall measures of other health problems.