Weight loss hard to cure with snack diet

According to dieticians research theory splitting daily food intake into four or five snack-type meals speeds up fat-burning.

As per study 200 obese Australians, they found no weight-loss advantage from such kind of a diet.

Michelle Palmer, a dietician at the University of Newcastle told "There seems to be little benefit to changing how often or how regularly you eat if you're trying to lose weight."

"We found it's not when you eat that matters, but what and how much you eat."

Mainly the study involved 200 obese men and women who were all going with the same healthy, weight-loss diet and with the similar kilojoules intake, but with differing eating patterns.

One group ate three times a day, while the other added in three extra snacks to try to keep metabolism boosted throughout the day and speed up fat-burning.
But results showed no difference in changes in weight, waist measurement, body fatness or blood sugar levels between the groups.

Ms Palmer has told the national dieticians conference on the Gold Coast this week that the findings should end debate on the advantages of snacking and focus Australians back on keeping dieting simple.

She also said that "Many people find it hard enough to stick to a healthy eating plan to lose weight, let alone worrying about any suggested benefits of snacking or not snacking."

Dr Tim Crowe, a nutrition specialist at Deakin University in Melbourne, said the research dispelled a "faddish dieting trend".

Dr Crowe added "It's popular advice yet there's been very little research to show it actually helps with weight loss."

"It's rubbish. In fact, there's some research to suggest playing around with when you eat may actually cause you to put weight on."

He said dieters should be discouraged from making drastic changes to their eating patterns, but do what works for them.