Eating every 3 hours, having three large meals a day, or portioning out more and eating five times daily? When it comes to the most appropriate number of times to eat, there is no consensus. This varies according to the specialist consulted and the specifics of each patient. Besides these most common strategies, there is the OMAD diet (This is a variation of intermittent fasting, as it advocates eating only one meal a day.

For those who are used to eating several times a day, it can be quite challenging to consider restricting the act of eating at a single time for 24 hours. And really, the OMAD diet is not for everyone. Besides having some contraindications, such a strategy may not be the best option depending on one's goal and lifestyle.

Is it safe to eat only one meal a day?

According to Higor Vieira, MD, post-graduated in Nutrology, doing OMAD on your own makes it a dangerous practice. This is because such a diet requires proper planning, as well as a follow-up to understand if the nutritional goals are being achieved.single meal.

"With the monitoring of a professional and being used as a tool for a certain period, it can be done safely," he explains.

In addition, there are some individuals who should not adopt the OMAD diet because it involves prolonged fasting. These are: people with diabetes on insulin, pregnant women, and the debilitatingly ill.

Possible Benefits of the OMAD Diet

Among the benefits of having one meal a day are:

• Improvement of autophagy (the body's process of self-cleansing and detoxification, carried out through the natural regeneration of cells, which happens because of prolonged fasting);
• Greater hormonal balance;
• It can improve body composition and facilitate weight loss;
• More convenience and time optimization;
• Decreased risk of intestinal or food intolerance - as you consume less food.

In addition, Francisco Tostes, an endocrinology physician, cites benefits related to reducing the development of chronic diseases and increasing focus during the day: "Some people notice this improvement because they don't face heavy digestion processes several times a day," he explains.

Anyway, Higor stresses that these are potential benefits, since there is no guarantee that everyone who adopts the OMAD diet will be able to enjoy them.

Hazards and Risks

First of all, it is important to understand that, since it is a very restrictive diet, it is very difficult for people to stick to it. When thinking in the medium and long term, it may not be so attractive - and for a diet plan to really work, it is essential that the individual can stick to the strategies and, thus, follow the diet as faithfully as possible.

In addition, not everyone can adapt and eat only one meal a day: "Many people can't tolerate long hours of fasting and lack energy," says Francisco.

Other possible risks and harms associated with the OMAD diet are:

• Difficulty in reaching the daily caloric goal, involving adequate amounts of macro and micronutrients;
• It can bring metabolic damage, increasing laziness and making it difficult to engage in physical activity;
• It hinders the gain of muscle mass;
• Increased hunger throughout the day;
• It can influence the onset or the worsening of eating disorders.

Read also: Intermittent fasting or calorie restricted diet?

Does eating one meal a day make you lose weight?

The search for new diets in order to lose weight is common. There is also no consensus regarding the best strategy to lose weight. OMAD is an option that can be recommended for some people who want to lose weight. However, it is essential to follow up with a nutritionist and have the approval of a professional before reducing the frequency of meals per day.

This strategy can be effective for weight loss, because by eating only once, it is easier to reach the caloric deficit necessary for weight loss. In addition, in the traditional OMAD diet, the meal should have a normal volume. In other words, it is not recommended to try to compensate for the time the individual has not eaten and eat a larger amount at this time.

"Basically, you combine the concept of intermittent fasting with a low-calorie diet to boost weight loss," says the endocrinologist.

Besides that, it is possible to mix the OMAD diet with some other food plan. Thus, the professional can use the idea of a single meal a day as a tool to boost weight loss and apply it twice a week, for example. This way, there is a greater balance and, thus, there are better chances of the individual being able to absorb all the necessary nutrients and take advantage of them,Also, the benefits of eating fewer calories.

"It can help with weight loss as long as it is well done, well conducted, and respected, taking into consideration the nutrient goal," concludes Higor.

Sources: Higor Vieira He is the physician at Clínica Nutrindo Ideais, graduated in medicine at the University of Vassouras, post-graduated in Nutrology at the Faculdade de Ciências Médicas da Santa Casa de São Paulo and Francisco Tostes he is an endocrinology physician and partner at Nutrindo Ideais.