An ‘anti-diet’ has helped wannabe slimmers lose more than two inches off their waist in just 18 weeks.
Scientists say the personalised regime — based on results of poo samples — reduces hunger pangs by loading people up on fibre.
The diet, created by renowned expert Professor Tim Spector and team, helps people feel and sleep better, too.
No food is ‘off limits’ under ZOE’s programme, which instructs users not to worry about calorie counting.
It aims to create sustainable eating habits, hence its ‘anti-diet’ tag.
Launched in the UK in 2022 and pioneered by Tim Spector (pictured), a professor of genetic epidemiology at King’s College London , the ZOE plan is part-diet, part-health programme and part nutritional science study
Typically, users are recommended to shun large amounts of dairy, processed carbs and alcohol.
Instead, they are advised to tuck into fermented and high fibre foods, including oily fish, wholegrains, nuts, seeds and pulses.
High fibre weight loss remedies have racked up millions of views on TikTok in recent weeks, with one viral-sensation Oatzempic, claiming to help people lose up to 40lb (18kg) in two months.
The ‘miracle’ breakfast, a blend of water, oats, a dash of cinnamon and squeeze of lime, has claimed to help reduce hunger and keep users fuller for longer given its beta-glucan content, a type of soluble fibre.
Kings College London researchers, affiliated to ZOE, split 347 obese volunteers, aged 52 with a BMI of 34 on average, into two groups.
More than half (177) were given an 18-week ZOE membership, which saw users sent at-home tests including poo and blood sample kits that normally cost almost £300.
These are sent to a lab to calculate blood fat, blood sugar, and gut microbiome levels.
Using the results, ZOE — which has boasted a waiting list of over 200,000 people — scores 1.2million food items from zero to 100, giving users personal advice on how their body responds to each.
The app, which costs £59.99 monthly, also offered them diet and lifestyle advice over the four month period.
The other 100 volunteers received a standard ‘Dietary Guidelines for Americans’ leaflet, alongside a video tutorial, online resources and weekly check-ins to encourage adherence to a weight loss attempt.
Volunteers had a health check before and after the trial, having waist circumference, blood pressure, glucose and cholesterol levels measured.
As well as losing 6.3cm off their waist, participants who stuck to the ZOE strategy shredded 4.7 per cent of their weight (4.78lbs or 2.17kg), on average.
For comparison, volunteers asked to adhere to the standard diet recommendations promoted by US health chiefs lost 2.4 per cent of their weight (0.6lbs or 0.3kg) and 5.35cm off their waist.
The ZOE group also saw a bigger drop in cholesterol, of 0.4 mmol/L, compared to 0.1 mmol/L.
The study, funded by ZOE, also found the group was twice as likely to feel less hungry and four times more likely to report better sleep quality.
Writing in the journal Nature Medicine, researchers said: ‘In our multilevel approach to personalization, the weight loss observed was moderate and below proposed clinically meaningful thresholds (five per cent).
‘However, moderate weight loss of this magnitude has been reported to improve health outcomes.’
Responding to the study’s results, Professor Spector said: ‘We have shown that those who follow ZOE’s nutrition advice will see improvements in their overall health.
‘It is clear some current population advice is out of date, over focused on calories and low fat foods and with low adherence unlikely to result in long term benefits.
‘ZOE advice shows that thinking about foods in a totally different way with the emphasis on quality, personalisation and gut health can have massive benefits if adopted more widely.
‘This is now a publicly available product in the US and UK that has been proven by clinical trial to work better than official population advice.’
The Nova system, developed by scientists in Brazil more than a decade ago, splits food into four groups based on the amount of processing it has gone through. Unprocessed foods include fruit, vegetables, nuts, eggs and meat. Processed culinary ingredients — which are usually not eaten alone — include oils, butter, sugar and salt
Dr Sarah Berry, ZOE’s chief scientist also told MailOnline: ‘What the trial shows is that ZOE’s approach of delivering personalised nutrition can help people lose the fat around their belly and improve their health whilst also having more energy and feeling less hungry.
‘It’s the antithesis of the restrictive and prescriptive diets that we’ve seen that exclude entire food groups and leave people feeling hungry and tired.
‘And it works better than standard care, even when people closely followed the generalised advice in the control arm. ZOE is a way of improving your health, for life.’
Latest NHS data shows 26 per cent of adults in England are obese and a further 38 per cent are overweight but not obese.
Semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic, has been shown to help users lose up to 33lbs (15.3kg) on average in around a year.
Ministers plan to dole the drug to millions of overweight Brits to trim the country’s bulging benefits bill. Children could eventually be given the jabs, too.
WHAT SHOULD A BALANCED DIET LOOK LIKE?
Meals should be based on potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other starchy carbohydrates, ideally wholegrain, according to the NHS
Eat at least 5 portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables every day. All fresh, frozen, dried and canned fruit and vegetables count.
Base meals on potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other starchy carbohydrates, ideally wholegrain
30 grams of fibre a day: This is the same as eating all of the following: 5 portions of fruit and vegetables, 2 whole-wheat cereal biscuits, 2 thick slices of wholemeal bread and large baked potato with the skin on
Have some dairy or dairy alternatives (such as soya drinks) choosing lower-fat and lower-sugar options
Eat some beans, pulses, fish, eggs, meat and other proteins (including 2 portions of fish every week, one of which should be oily)
Choose unsaturated oils and spreads and consuming in small amounts
Drink 6-8 cups/glasses of water a day
Adults should have less than 6g of salt and 20g of saturated fat for women or 30g for men a day
Source: NHS Eatwell Guide
