Time-Restricted Eating in PCOS: Randomized Trial on Body Weight

Key Takeaways

• Time-restricted eating and daily calorie restriction were each associated with greater 6-month weight reduction than control.
• The two active dietary strategies produced similar body-weight results at 6 months.
• No serious adverse events were reported during the trial.

In a 6-month randomized Nature Medicine trial, women with polycystic ovary syndrome in the time-restricted eating group had a 4.32% greater reduction in body weight than controls. That reduction was similar to the loss seen with daily calorie restriction, and both active dietary approaches produced greater weight loss than the control group. Investigators compared a defined daily eating window with standard calorie restriction and control over the same follow-up period. Both active strategies outpaced control, while the two diet approaches remained broadly similar.

The study randomized 76 women with polycystic ovary syndrome to three groups and followed each participant for 6 months. The time-restricted eating regimen used a 6-hour schedule, with all meals taken between 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. Participants in that group did not track calories, separating meal timing from formal calorie counting during the intervention. Daily calorie restriction served as the active comparator at 25% daily energy restriction, while the control group made no dietary changes. The primary endpoint was percent change in body weight at 6 months.

At 6 months, the TRE group experienced a 4.32% reduction in body weight relative to controls, with a 95% CI of -6.20 to -2.44 and P < 0.01. Calorie restriction was associated with a 4.66% reduction relative to controls, with a 95% CI of -7.13 to -2.19 and P < 0.01. The difference between TRE and calorie restriction was 0.34%, with a 95% CI of -2.15 to 2.83 and P = 0.79. Both active groups differed significantly from control, without a significant difference between the two interventions.

No serious adverse events were observed during the 6-month trial. Time-restricted eating produced greater weight loss than control over the study period and remained comparable to daily calorie restriction at 6 months. The safety findings and comparative pattern were straightforward at the primary endpoint in this randomized study population.