> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.foodconsumer.org/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Calorie restriction induces weight loss, boosts insulin sensitivity - URL: https://www.foodconsumer.org/calorie_restriction_weight_loss_0902120446/ - Published: 2012-09-02T17:43:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-09-22T15:53:18.000Z - Description: In a trial of 63 sedentary adults with metabolic syndrome, 12 weeks of calorie restriction produced a 7.6 percent weight loss and a 49 percent improvement in insulin sensitivity; adding aerobic exercise gave 9.1 percent weight loss and a 45 percent insulin improvement. - Author: Food Consumer - Tags: Lifestyle, Health News, #vivvo-import By David Liu, PHD Sunday Sept 2, 2012 ([foodconsumer.org](http://www.foodconsumer.org/)) -- A new study in the journal Diabetes and Obesity Metabolism suggests that practicing calorie restriction or using a diet with calories reduced can lead to weight loss and improvement of insulin sensitivity in obese women with metabolic syndrome. The study showed that 1 12-week calorie restriction resulted in a weight loss of 7.6 percent of baseline weight and improved insulin sensitivity by 49 percent. Insulin resistance and visceral adiposity are associated with fatty liver disease, according to N.E. Straznicky of Baker IDI Heart & Diabetes Institute, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and colleagues who conducted the study. The study was meant examine the association between caloric restriction alone or together with moderate-intensity aerobic exercise and liver enzymes, a surrogate marker of liver injury, in obese subjects with metabolic syndrome. In the study, 63 sedentary men and women at a mean age of 55 years with a mean body mass index of 32.7 kg/m2 and metabolic syndrome were randomly assigned to 12-week calorie restriction or calorie restriction plus physical exercise or no treatment as controls. Those who were treated with calorie restriction lost 7.6 percent of weight on average, compared to 9.1 percent in the group with calorie restriction plus exercise. In the calorie restriction group, insulin was improved by 49 percent, compared to 45 percent in the calorie restriction plus exercise group. Fitness or maximal oxygen consumption increased by 19% in the group treated with calorie restriction plus exercise only. Calorie restriction decreased alanine aminotransferase levels by 20% and γ-glutamyltransferase by 28 percent whereas calorie restriction plus exercise decreased alanine aminotransferase by 24 percent and γ-glutamyltransferase by 33 percent. Reduction in abdominal fat mass was associated with the change in alanine aminotransferase and γ-glutamyltransferase whereas change in dietary saturated fat intake was associated with the change in alanine aminotransferase. Alanine aminotransferase activity is associated with the liver and kidney function, and normally, a low level exists in the blood. The enzyme is increased when the liver is damaged and thus, this parameter is used to screen for and/or monitor liver disease. Serum γ-glutamyltransferase activity can be found in diseases of the liver, biliary system, and pancreas and thus this marker is used to screen liver and other disease. The researchers concluded "Reductions in central adiposity and saturated fat intake are key drivers of improvement in liver enzymes during lifestyle interventions. Exercise training did not confer significant incremental benefits in this study." The real question is how to reduce intake of calories. One thing people can do to reduce their intake of calories is eat foods very slowly.