Table 1.
Characteristics of included RCTs in the meta-analysis.
| References | Country | Trial registration | Patient inclusion criteria | Intervention | Control | Follow-up (month) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fasting patterns | N | Dietary patterns | N | |||||
| Antoni et al. (16) | UK | ISRCTN13687043 | BMI>25 kg/m2; Age: 18–65 years | IER (2:5 diet) | 24 | CER | 24 | 16 |
| Beaulieu et al. (17) | UK | NCT03447600 | BMI: 25–34.9 kg/m2; Age: 18–55 years | ADF | 24 | CER | 22 | 10 |
| Bhutani et al. (18) | USA | NA | BMI: 30–39.9 kg/m2; Age: 25–65 years | ADF | 25 | Non-intervention diet | 16 | 3 |
| Bowen et al. (19) | Australia | ACTRN12616000110482 | BMI > 27 kg/m2; Age: 25–60 years | ADF+DER | 82 | DER | 81 | 4 |
| Cai et al. (20) | China | ChiCTR1900024411 | BMI > 24 kg/m2 with NAFLD; Age: 18–65 years | ADF | 95 | Non-intervention diet | 79 | 3 |
| TRF (16:8 diet) | 97 | |||||||
| Carlson et al. (21) | USA | NA | BMI: 18–25 kg/m2; Age: 40–50 years | TRF (20:4 diet) | 15 | Non-intervention diet | 15 | 4 |
| Catenacci et al. (22) | USA | NA | BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2; Age: 18–55 years | ADF | 15 | CR | 14 | 8 |
| Chow et al. (23) | USA | NCT03129581 | BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2; Age: 18–65 years | TRF (16:8 diet) | 13 | Non-intervention diet | 9 | 3 |
| Cienfuegos et al. (24) | USA | NCT03867773 | BMI: 30–49.9 kg/m2; Age: 18–65 years | TRF (20:4 diet) | 19 | Non-intervention diet | 19 | 2 |
| TRF (18:6 diet) | 20 | |||||||
| Conley et al. (25) | Australia | ACTRN12614000396628 | BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2; Age: 55–75 years | IER (2:5 diet) | 12 | CR | 12 | 6 |
| Corley et al. (26) | New Zealand | ACTRN12614000402640 | BMI: 30–45 kg/m2 with T2DM; Age > 18 years | TRF (2:5 diet) | 22 | CR | 19 | 4 |
| Correia et al. (7) | USA | NA | Age: 18–30 years | TRF (16:8 diet) | 9 | Non-intervention diet | 9 | 1 |
| Coutinho et al. (27) | Norway | NCT02169778 | BMI: 30–40 kg/m2; Age: 18–65 years | IER (3:4 diet) | 18 | CER | 17 | 3 |
| de Oliveira Maranhão Pureza et al. (44) | Brazil | NA | BMI: 30–45kg/m2 | TRF+CR (12:12 diet) | 31 | CR | 27 | 12 |
| Gabel et al. (28) | USA | NCT00960505 | BMI: 25–39.9 kg/m2; Age: 18–65 years | ADF | 34 | CR | 35 | 12 |
| Non-intervention diet | 31 | |||||||
| Guo et al. (29) | China | NCT03608800 | Age: 30–50 years with comorbidities | IF (2:5 diet) | 23 | Non-intervention diet | 23 | 2 |
| Harvie et al. (30) | UK | NA | BMI: 24–40kg/m2; Age: 30–45 years | IER (2:5 diet) | 53 | CER | 54 | 6 |
| Harvie et al. (31) | USA | ISRCTN52913838 | BMI: 24–45 kg/m2; Age:20–65 years | IECR (2:5 diet) | 37 | DER | 40 | 16 |
| Headland et al. (3) | Australia | ACTRN12614001041640 | BMI ≥ 27 kg/m2; Age>18 years | IER (2:5 diet) | 82 | CER | 81 | 13 |
| Hirsh et al. (32) | USA | NCT03372109 | BMI: 25–29.9 kg/m2; Age: 21–65 years | IF (2:5 diet) | 10 | Non-intervention diet | 12 | 2 |
| Kotarsky et al. (33) | USA | NCT03823872 | BMI: 25–34.9 kg/m2; Age: 35–65 years | TRF (16:8 diet) | 13 | Non-intervention diet | 10 | 14 |
| Kunduraci et al. (34) | Turkey | NCT04502329 | BMI ≥ 27 kg/m2 with comorbidities; Age: 18–65 years | IER (16:8 diet) | 35 | CER | 35 | 3 |
| Lowe et al. (35) | USA | NCT03393195 | Age: 18–64 | TRF (16:8 diet) | 69 | Non-intervention diet | 72 | 3 |
| Martens et al. (35) | USA | NCT02970188 | BMI <40 kg/m2; Age: 55–79 years | TRF (16:8 diet) | 24 | CR | 24 | 2 |
| Martínez-Rodríguez et al. (6) | Spain | NCT04404413 | NA | IF | 14 | Non-intervention diet | 14 | 4 |
| McAllister et al. (37) | USA | NA | NA | TRF (16:8 diet) | 11 | Non-intervention diet | 12 | 1 |
| Moro et al. (38) | Italy | NA | NA | TRF (16:8 diet) | 17 | Non-intervention diet | 17 | 2 |
| Moro et al. (39) | Italy | NCT04320784 | Age <23 years | TRF (16:8 diet) | 8 | Non-intervention diet | 8 | 1 |
| Oh et al. (40) | Korea | NCT03652532 | BMI > 23 kg/m2; Age: 18–64 years | ADF+CR | 13 | CR | 10 | 2 |
| Panizza et al. (41) | USA | NCT03639350 | BMI: 25–40 kg/m2; Age: 35–55 years | IER+MED (2:5 diet) | 30 | DASH | 30 | 6 |
| Parvaresh et al. (42) | Iran | IRCT201509092395N8 | BMI: 25–40 kg/m2; Age: 25–60 years | ADF | 35 | CR | 35 | 2 |
| Pureza et al. (43) | Brazil | RBR-387v6v | BMI: 30–45 kg/m2 | TRF+CR (12:12 diet) | 31 | CR | 27 | 1 |
| Razavi et al. (45) | Iran | NA | BMI: 25–40 kg/m2 with MetS; Age: 25–60 years | ADF | 40 | CR | 40 | 4 |
| Schübel et al. (46) | Germany | NCT02449148 | BMI: 25–40 kg/m2; Age: 35–65 years | ICR (2:5 diet) | 45 | CR | 49 | 12 |
| Non-intervention diet | 52 | |||||||
| Stote et al. (47) | USA | NA | BMI: 18–25 kg/m2; Age: 40–50 years | TRF (20:4 diet) | 15 | Non-intervention diet | 15 | 6 |
| Teng et al. (49) | Malaysia | NA | BMI: 23–29.9 kg/m2; Age: 50–70 years | FCR (2:5 diet) | 14 | Non-intervention diet | 14 | 3 |
| Teng et al. (48) | Malaysia | NA | BMI: 23–29.9 kg/m2; Age: 50–70 years | FCR (2:5 diet) | 28 | Non-intervention diet | 28 | 3 |
| Tinsley et al. (50) | USA | NA | NA | TRF (20:4 diet + 4:3 diet) | 14 | Non-intervention diet | 14 | 2 |
| Tinsley et al. (51) | USA | NCT03404271 | Age: 18–30 years | TRF (16:8 diet) | 13 | Non-intervention diet | 14 | 2 |
| Trabelsi et al. (9) | Tunisia | NA | NA | Ramadan | 10 | Non-intervention diet | 9 | 1 |
| Trabelsi et al. (52) | Tunisia | NA | NA | Ramadan | 8 | Non-intervention diet | 8 | 1 |
| Varady et al. (53) | USA | NA | BMI: 20–29.9 kg/m2; Age: 35–65 years | ADF | 16 | Non-intervention diet | 16 | 3 |
| Zouhal et al. (54) | Tunisia | NA | BMI: 30–40 kg/m2 | Ramadan | 14 | Non-intervention diet | 14 | 1 |
RCT, randomized controlled trial; IER, intermittent energy restriction; ADF, alternate-day fasting; DER, daily energy restriction; TRF, time-restricted feeding; NAFLD, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease; IF, intermittent fasting; CR, calorie restriction; MED, Mediterranean diet; MetS, metabolic syndrome; ICR, intermittent calorie restriction; FCR, Muslim sunnah fasting; UK, United Kingdom; USA, the United States; BMI, body mass index; NA, no available; CER, continuous energy restriction; ICER, intermittent energy and carbohydrate restriction; DASH, Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension; 2:5 diet, 2-day fasting per week; 16:8 diet, 16-h fasting per day; 20:8 diet, 20-h fasting per day; 18:6 diet, 18-h fasting per day; 3:4 diet, 3-day fasting per week; 12:12 diet, 12-h fasting per day; 4:3 diet, 4-day fasting per week; N, number of patients.