A Monash University-led study (the SWIFt study) has found intermittent fasting (IF) used as an alternative to continuous energy restriction (CER) supports metabolic health improvements and weight loss in night shift workers.
Published in The Lancet's eBioMedicine, the researchers tested the effectiveness of two modified IF strategies, more commonly known as the 5:2 diet, compared with CER on weight loss and improvements in insulin resistance in 250 night shift workers.
For 24 weeks the participants followed a diet of 2100 kJ/d (about 25 per cent of usual dietary intake) for two days of the week (5:2 diet) either on days off/day shift or whilst on night shift and ate their usual diet on the remaining five days. At 24 weeks of following the different interventions, the data was compared to the group following the CER diet.
