Short term weight loss: effects of diet composition.

To obtain a nutritional strategy for the treatment of obesity, it is important to focuse more closely the role of macronutrient composition on weight loss. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of two low-energy diets different in fat content on short term weight loss. A clinical study on the comparative effects of low-fat (20% of total energy) and medium fat (28-30% of total energy) hypocaloric diets for four weeks was carry out. Ten overweight females (BMI >26 kg/m 2 ) in good health with standard lipemic pattern and a high dietary fat intake (>30% of the total usual energy intake) were studied. The following measurements were carried out: serum lipids concentrations, anthropometric measurements, energy expenditure (EE); bioelectrical impedance analysis. Dietary habits and food consumption were recorded. All subjects completed the 9 weeks data collection showing a significant decrease in body weight (5.9 ± 1.5 kg, p 0.05). Our data suggest that short term weight loss is correlated positively to the reduction in energy intake but it is not significantly dependent on the dietary fat content of the different treatments. It could be interesting to evaluate the efficacy of the two different dietetic treatments in the weight loss maintenance at long term. Deux regimes alimentaires hypocaloriques differents dans leur composition en lipides ont ete compares. 10 femmes obeses ont suivi l'un de ces regimes pendant 4 semaines: (20% ou 28-30% de l'apport energetique total), leurs habitudes alimentaires ont ete enregistrees. Des mesures anthropometriques et biochimiques ont ete faites. Les resultats montrent qu'il y a une correlation positive entre la perte de poids a court terme et la reduction de la prise energetique, mais non dependante de la teneur en graisse du regime.