Intermittent fasting is an eating pattern that alternates between set periods of eating and fasting, with the focus on when food is eaten rather than on specific foods. Popular versions include time‑restricted eating (such as a 16‑hour fast followed by an 8‑hour eating window), alternate‑day fasting, and the 5:2 diet, where two days per week are very low in calories.
These patterns can lead to intermittent fasting weight loss mainly because they make it easier for some people to eat fewer calories overall, which is the same basic mechanism behind most weight‑loss diets.
