Diet Plan Research: Zone, Atkins,
Weight Watchers and Ornish

Just say yes to food. A study found that the less restrictive your diet plan, the greater your chances of long-term success.

Researchers randomly assigned 160 people to one of four diets: the Zone, Atkins, Weight Watchers or Ornish. Fifty percent of those following the restrictive Atkins and Ornish approaches had quit after a year, compared with 35 percent of the people on the more moderate Zone and Weight Watchers plans.

Did one erase more weight than the other? No, all adherents netted losses of five to nine kilos. “Each strategy reduces calorie intake to a similar extent, so the weight loss is similar,” says study author Dr. Michael Dansinger.

The message: focus on your ability to grow old with a diet rather than on its gut-busting gimmick.