The CSIRO has found the secret to weight loss and it’s called the ‘Flexi’ diet

Intermittent fasting just got the tick of approval from Australia’s leading scientists. 

Photo: iStock

The CSIRO, the country’s peak scientific body has launched a new diet for weight loss and surprisingly it includes intermittent fasting and diet shakes.  Say what?! 

Yep, the same research organisation, which brought us the 12-week CSIRO Total Wellbeing Diet 12 years ago a high protein, moderate carb, low fat sensible approach to eating that your mum was mad for in the noughties is now backing the sorts of controlled measures you’d expect to relegate to the ‘fad diets that don’t work’ pile, alongside the Dukan and Cayenne pepper, lemon juice and Maple syrup diet. 

Why?  Because you see, they’ve been found to work.  Mind blown. 

The newly launched ‘Flexi’ diet is a weight loss program based on research carried out by CSIRO scientists, which found that fasting can be an effective way to lose weight and stay healthy. 

Participants in the 16 week trial lost an average of 11kg and saw improvements in their cholesterol, insulin, glucose and blood pressure. 

This was the largest study exploring the effects of an intermittent fasting style of diet on weight loss, health and nutrient status, CSIRO Research Dietitian Dr Jane Bowen said in a press release about the launch. 

In addition to improvement in weight loss and overall health, we also observed psychological improvements, with participants indicating better control over eating habits. 

The weekly ‘Flexi’ program involves three days of intermittent fasting aka ‘control’ days, where you consume 40 per cent of your energy needs, through veggies and meal replacement shakes.  Yes, really. 

This is paired with three kilojoule-controlled ‘classic’ days, of two meal replacements, two healthy snacks and one regular balanced meal. 

Finally, the diet allows one free ‘flexi’ day (think cheat day) where you can eat and drink whatever you want. 

Losing weight can be challenging with results often limited by an individual's ability to stick with a diet, Dr Bowen said. 

With 63.4 percent of Australians aged 18 years and over overweight or obese, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics data, this program could be an option for long term sustainable weight loss. 

While the CSIRO is an independent body, it’s facing criticism for working in conjunction with meal replacement company, Impromy.  The weekly ‘Flexi’ program is a collaboration between the two, and is available in pharmacies, offering a recipe book along with online resources like meal plans, progress tracking tools and virtual consults with dietitians. 

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