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Many guidelines are in favour of losing weight gradually, reflecting a widespread view that weight lost rapidly is more quickly regained. However a new Australian study – which enrolled 51 men and 153 women aged 18 to 70 years – challenges this assumption.

At baseline, each patient had a body mass index (BMI) of between 30 and 45kg/m². Patients entered a programme that aimed to help them lose 15 per cent of body weight over either 12 or 36 weeks. Researchers then asked patients who lost at least 12.5 per cent to follow a weight maintenance diet for another 144 weeks.

After 12 and 36 weeks respectively, 81 and 62 per cent in the gradual and rapid groups lost at least 12.5 per cent of their body weight. However, after 144 weeks of the trial, the gradual and rapid group had regained 71.2 and 70.5 per cent of their lost weight respectively.

These findings, the authors of the study comment, “are not consistent with present dietary guidelines, which recommend gradual over rapid weight loss, based on the belief that rapid weight loss is more quickly regained”.