Efficacy of Medifast's 5 meal replacement program compared to a food-based diet for weight loss and weight maintenance: 4-month weight loss results

Objective: A RCT was conducted to determine the effectiveness of Medifast's 5 & 1 meal replacement program on body weight and body composition compared to an isocaloric food-based diet plan for a 4-month period of weight loss. Methods: Subjects: 90 obese adults randomly assigned to 2 groups: Medifast (MD) (n=45; 30 women, 15 men; BMI 38.5 ± 6.8) and Food-based (FB) (n=45; 34 women, 11 men; BMI 37.8 ± 4.5). Subjects met biweekly with RDs to have anthropometrics measured and for dietary and behavioral counseling. Weight and bp were measured biweekly. Waist circumference (WC), % body fat, lean muscle mass (LMM), visceral fat, and pulse were measured every 4 weeks. Results: Subjects lost 2x more body weight on Medifast [MD -29.8lbs, FB -14.4lbs (p=0.000); % wt loss: MD -7.0, FB -1.2 (p=0.002)]; 5x more body fat [% Δ in body fat: MD -13.6, FB -2.7 (p=0.001)]; improved WC [WC Δ: MD -13cm, FB -8.2cm (p=0.047); % Δ WC: MD -11.2, FB -7.2 (p=0.069)]; and had 7x greater % reduction in visceral fat: MD -25.4, FB -3.7...