TABLE 1.
Study characteristics of the included RCTs1
| Author, year, reference | Study origin (country) | Study design (RCT: parallel or crossover) | Study length, wk | Washout (length) | Comparison of types of meal frequency | Sample size, n | Primary disease status | Mean age, y | Mean BMI, kg/m2 | T2D, % | Female, % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alencar et al., 2015 (23) | USA | RCT, crossover | 2 | 2 wk | 6 vs. 2 | 11 | Obesity | 52 | 39.1 | 0 | 100 |
| Antoine et al., 1984 (24) | France | RCT, crossover | 2 | None | 6 vs. 3 | 10 | Obesity | 40.9 | 31.8 | NR | 100 |
| Arciero et al., 2013 (25) | USA | RCT, parallel | 4 | — | 6 vs. 3 | 30 | Overweight or obesity | 46 | 29.9 | 0 | 86 |
| Arnold et al., 1993 (26) | New Zealand | RCT, crossover | 2 | 1–7 d | 9 vs. 3 | 19 | Healthy | 32.1 | 23.1 | 0 | 50 |
| Arnold et al., 1994 (27) | New Zealand | RCT, crossover | 4 | None | 9 vs. 3 | 16 | Hypercholesterolemia | 49.9 | 26.5 | 0 | 31 |
| Arnold et al., 1997 (28) | New Zealand | RCT, crossover | 4 | None | 9 vs. 3 | 13 | T2D, impaired glucose tolerance | 46–70 (range) | 29.9 | 85 | 69 |
| Bachman and Raynor, 2012 (29) | USA | RCT, parallel | 24 | — | 7–9 vs. 3 | 51 | Overweight or obesity | 51 | 35.5 | 0 | 58 |
| Berteus Forslund et al., 2008 (30) | Sweden | RCT, parallel | 52 | — | 6 vs. 3 | 140 | Obesity | 39.5 | 38.4 | 0 | 74 |
| Cameron et al., 2010 (31) | Canada | RCT, parallel | 8 | — | 6 vs. 3 | 18 | Obesity | 35.5 | 36 | 0 | 50 |
| Finkelstein and Fryer, 1971 (32) | USA | RCT, parallel | 9 | — | 6 vs. 3 | 8 | Overweight | 20–22 | 26.9 | 0 | 100 |
| Iwao et al., 1996 (33) | Japan | RCT, parallel | 2 | — | 6 vs. 2 | 12 | Healthy | 20 | 20.9 | 0 | NR |
| Jenkins et al., 1995 (34) | Canada | RCT, crossover | 2 | 3 wk | 17 vs. 3 | 7 | Normal weight and overweight | 39.6 | NR | 0 | 0 |
| Kahleova et al., 2014 (35) | Czech Republic | RCT, crossover | 12 | None | 6 vs. 2 | 54 | T2D | 59.4 | 32.6 | 100 | 46 |
| Koopman et al., 2014 (36) | Netherlands | RCT, parallel | 6 | — | 6 vs. 3 | 36 | Healthy | 22 | 22.5 | 0 | 0 |
| Murphy et al., 1996 (37) | UK | RCT, crossover | 2 | 3 wk | 12 vs. 2 | 11 | Healthy | 22 | 23.6 | 0 | 100 |
| Papakonstantinou et al., 2016 (38) | Greece | RCT, crossover | 12 | None | 6 vs. 3 | 45 | PCOS | 27 | 27 | 0 | 100 |
| Papakonstantinou et al., 2018 (39) | Greece | RCT, crossover | 12 | None | 6 vs. 3 | 53 | Impaired glucose tolerance or T2D | 49.3 | 32.4 | 26 | 53 |
| Perrigue et al., 2017 (40) | USA | RCT, crossover | 3 | 2 wk | 8 vs. 3 | 15 | Healthy and obesity | 27.1 | 23.7 | 0 | 67 |
| Schlundt et al., 1992 (41) | USA | RCT, parallel | 12 | — | 3 vs. 2 | 52 | Obesity | 18–55 (range) | 30.6 | 0 | 100 |
| Stote et al., 2007 (42) | USA | RCT, crossover | 8 | 11 wk | 3 vs. 1 | 21 | Healthy | 45 | 23.4 | 0 | 67 |
| Verboeket-van de Venne and Westerterp, 1993 (43) | Netherlands | RCT, parallel | 4 | — | 4 vs. 2 | 14 | Overweight and obesity | 46.1 | 30.2 | NR | 100 |
| Young et al., 1971 (44) | USA | RCT, crossover | 5 | None | 6 vs. 3 vs. 1 | 11 | Overweight and obesity | 22.2 | 33.5 | NR | 0 |
1NR, not reported; PCOS, polycystic ovary syndrome; RCT, randomized controlled trial; T2D, type 2 diabetes.