What is the minimum energy/caloric deficit needed to induce weight loss/positive changes in body composition?

Hello,

Please refer the following link which explains all components of food for weight management.

A Scientific Opinion EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies (NDA)

I wish I had a study to offer you.  Only my observations with patients:  You don't necessarily need a calorie deficit.  Insulin  influences energy partitioning, and for clients with any measure of insulin resistance I  teach them to shift their diet to include more protein and less carbs.  They lose fat weight and inches, but not always a significant amount of weight since some also gain lean body mass in the process.  Over time, as insulin levels decrease (and possibly other factors we don't measure or consider yet, like a shift in gut microbes) I find my clients experience less hunger and then they find themselves eating  less.  I suspect that they are more effectively burning fat for fuel.   That is the silver lining.  Fat loss continues without experiencing extreme hunger nor triggering a cascade of compensatory changes resulting in loss of lean body mass or a lower resting metabolic rate.

Bonnie, very good observation. A lifestyle change is needed that increases physical activity, decreases sedentary behavior and shifts eating patterns based on a client-centered approach. What substitutions and small changes are agreeable to the client/patient that are in accordance with their medical condition? So there is no simple answer about calories due to the diversity of psycho-social and medical factors across populations. As Bonnie stated, changes over time lead to metabolic improvements and building of lean body tissue. This, in turn, raises the set-point so that more fat is burned. As part of lifestyle change, reducing calories by making a modification of 500 as shown to be effective (evidence-based research) according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) - the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. Below is the link.

DILETA, ISSO VAI DEPENDER DE VÁRIOS FATORES COMO: PESO CORPORAL, NÍVEL DE ATIVIDADE FÍSICA HABITUAL, DIETA, ETC....

PARA VERIFICAR ESSES VALORES QUE SÃO MUITO HOMOGENIOS, OU SEJA É MUITO INDIVIDUALIZADOS ESSES VALORES, VOCÊ PODE TRABALHAR COM PONTOS DE CORTE, OU VALORES MÉDIOS DE SUA POPULAÇÃO.

BONS ESTUDOS.

Would someone please translate Rafael's response to English for me, please? The population does play a significant role in treatment. A more homogeneous population would have less confounders in the dietary restriction study.

Thanks for your responses. I'll do some investigating on the insulin/diet quality, Bonnie. Joan, I'm familiar with that number and I  see it quite frequently, however, I'm a bit skeptical that that is the bare minimum.

Weight can be lost with just 100-200 Kcal decrease; however, it would be slower. This is probably the best method since the person would not have to change that many things (small steps) and would be more likely to continue the lifestyle change.

Remember that calorie estimation is notoriously less that accurate.  FDA nutrition labels allow a 20% margin of error.  In addition a profound difference in energy harvest has been measured  and thought to be linked to microbes/mucosal thickness.   Calorie balance equations don't begin to address these factors.  These are just a few reasons why I focus on helping clients impact the regulatory hormones and other agents that enhance our ability to burn fat for fuel, knowing that these mechanisms often trump calorie counting.  That's especially true because clients feel more satisfied and don't have to struggle in the same way with hunger and resulting downregulation of REE.   Calories still count, they are just not the only thing that counts.

According to ADA evidance based practice for obesity management a 250-500 kcal per day is recommended to induce a weight loss of 0,250 to 0,500 kg per week

in practice it is more realistic to estimiate the total daily energy intake based on the patient actual intake (dietary intake assessment) and modify gradually based on monitoring the patient and evaliuating the results

Brendon,

Dina is correct; it is more than just total calories. Pathways that signal hunger and satiety are often genetically different (polymorphism) in persons who are obese as compared to their counterparts. Maintaining a small reduction in calories requires attention to the factors that cause over-eating and trigger episodes of eating when not hungry - ie stress eating.