A RENOWNED obesity researcher has advocated meal replacement shakes and controversial yo-yo dieting as alternatives to sustained healthy eating.

Oxford University professor Susan Jebb said there is now solid evidence showing short-term diets can cut weight-related diabetes, even if the loss is later regained.

She also said a stint of drinking shakes instead of solid food, with guidance from professionals, can deliver safe and successful results.

The nutrition scientist, formerly the Government’s key obesity advisor, said: “People are getting fatter and we have got to try something different.

“It’s not a bad thing to have a short period of really concentrated effort to change.

“We have got to be realistic. Dieting is flipping hard work – we live in a world with so much food around and people are generally confused about what works.”

She said doctors should stop shying away from encouraging overweight and obese people to diet, adding: “We’ve now got a whole raft of interventions that we know now are effective.”

“There is little evidence that one diet is better than any other, it’s sticking to it that matters.”

Yo-yo dieting – the repeated cycle of losing and gaining weight – has attracted criticism in the past about health risks, but Prof Jebb said evidence did not prove this.

The expert, who is obesity lead for NIHR Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, said: “Of course I want to say ‘change your eating habits forever’, and ultimately that’s what we want, but it’s hard.

“There’s been heavy promotion of ‘clean eating’ but it’s like an exclusive club – I worry people will turn away completely. It turns dieting into an extreme sport.”

Listing alternatives, she cited a study carried out in Newcastle, in which diabetics were put onto an eight-week meal replacement diet.

Testing months later revealed the majority no longer had Type 2 diabetes – results Prof Jebb described as ‘phenomenal’.

Prof Jebb said ambitious long-term goals can feel so unachievable that people never bother to try.

She said: “Losing a surprisingly small amount of weight can bring astonishing health benefits.”

She referred to a long-term study in which overweight people lost weight, then were monitored over 15 years to check their progress.

Even those who returned to their baseline weight had reduced their risk of developing diabetes, despite being the same weight as people in a control group, who stayed at a constant weight throughout.

Prof Jebb said: “It’s not necessary about how big you are, but how long you’ve had that weight. You accrue metabolic benefits.

“You can reap the benefits even if it doesn’t last forever.”

Prof Jebb, who appeared in Monday’s Oxford Mail to mark the start of National Obesity Week, will discuss dieting at a talk tomorrow.

Members of the public are welcome to attend at the John Radcliffe Hospital’s Lecture Theatre 2, for a 6.30pm start.