RCT | Time-restricted eating not more effective than daily calorie restriction for managing nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
21 Mar, 2023 | 13:38h | UTCSummary: The TREATY-FLD randomized clinical trial investigated the effects of time-restricted eating (TRE) versus daily calorie restriction (DCR) on intrahepatic triglyceride (IHTG) content and metabolic risk factors in patients with obesity and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).
Participants were randomly assigned to either TRE (eating only between 8:00 am and 4:00 pm) or DCR (habitual meal timing) and instructed to maintain a diet of 1500 to 1800 kcal/d for men and 1200 to 1500 kcal/d for women for 12 months.
The study found that the IHTG content was reduced by 6.9% in the TRE group and 7.9% in the DCR group after 12 months, a difference that was not statistically significant. Furthermore, TRE did not produce additional benefits for reducing body weight, liver stiffness, or metabolic risk factors compared with DCR.
The study supports that the main focus of a diet for managing NAFLD is caloric restriction, which can be achieved both with a TRE strategy or without a TRE strategy with similar results.
Commentary on Twitter
TREATY-FLD RCT found that time-restricted eating did not produce additional benefits for reducing intrahepatic triglyceride content, body fat and metabolic risk factors vs daily-calorie-restriction among adults with obesity and NAFLD. https://t.co/it2n4o9Th1
— JAMA Network Open (@JAMANetworkOpen) March 17, 2023