--- title: Which Popular Weight-Loss Plans Truly Work description: Science weighs in on which popular weight-loss plans truly work canonical: https://time.com/3814977/dieters-dilemma/ author: Alice Park article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-04-09T11:42:51.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T06:15:45.534Z article:section: Health og:title: Which Popular Weight-Loss Plans Truly Work og:description: Science weighs in on which popular weight-loss plans truly work og:url: https://time.com/3814977/dieters-dilemma/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdd94fcfb4dd5919e/6988c14ffb4eac158189161e/time-health-stock-weight-loss-4.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5902 og:image:height: 3320 og:image:alt: time-health-stock-weight-loss og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Which Popular Weight-Loss Plans Truly Work twitter:description: Science weighs in on which popular weight-loss plans truly work twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdd94fcfb4dd5919e/6988c14ffb4eac158189161e/time-health-stock-weight-loss-4.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Dieter's Dilemma > Sponsored content. 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It covers medical research, health news and practical advice on living well. #### Where can I get reliable health news by email? Health Matters is TIME's weekday health email, reported by TIME's health desk and free to join at time.com/newsletters. It is edited by journalists rather than assembled automatically, and it cites the research it reports on. #### Is Health Matters free? Yes. Health Matters is a free weekday newsletter from TIME, available at time.com/newsletters. #### Who reads TIME's Health Matters newsletter? Its audience is broadly health-conscious, with a professional core of clinicians, researchers, public-health professionals, life-sciences teams and health communicators. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-health-2026q3/newsletters?i=50bef866-e47b-47f3-a537-0d4cd2e08218&cr=time-nl-health-2026q3-v1)  by [Alice Park](https://time.com/author/alice-park/)  ## Alice Park Senior Correspondent Apr 9, 2015 11:42 AM UTC  Torned Broken Paper Plates on Blue and Red Background. Torned Broken Paper Plates on Blue and Red Background. Getty Images  by [Alice Park](https://time.com/author/alice-park/)  ## Alice Park Senior Correspondent Apr 9, 2015 11:42 AM UTC If you want to drop a few pounds, you don’t have to look far for plans that promise extraordinary results. But finding proof of the long-term effectiveness of a diet–especially the kind you have to pay for–isn’t so easy. A new paper in the Annals of Internal Medicine combed through more than 4,200 studies on commercial weight-loss plans and found that just 45 of them were done under the gold scientific standard of randomly assigning people to a weight-loss program or not and then tracking their weight changes over time. And in those studies, users of only two plans, Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig, were followed for at least a year. Such a lack of good research is a problem not just for dieters but also for doctors. The American Medical Association urges physicians to screen for and treat people who are overweight or obese as they would any patient with a chronic disease, but absent solid data, doctors are in a bind. “Now that obesity is coming under the medical umbrella, it’s really going to put pressure on whether commercial programs … have good evidence to show their effectiveness,” says lead study author Dr. Kimberly Gudzune, associate professor at Johns Hopkins University. It’s also a challenge for insurers that need to determine which plans to cover. For now, here’s what rigorous research reveals about five very popular weight-loss plans. ## Weight Watchers _Foods are assigned different point values_ This was one of two plans in which dieters were followed for at least a year, according to the paper. People who stick to the plan lose about 3% more weight than controls. Experts say there’s enough evidence of the effectiveness of this point-based system for doctors to recommend it to overweight or obese patients. ## Jenny Craig _Prepackaged meals are part of the program_ The only other plan whose adherents were tracked for more than a year, it helped dieters lose 5% more weight than controls. Other research found the plan helped those with diabetes manage their condition. That’s encouraging to doctors, but the program is costly, with enrollment and monthly fees, and it requires eating branded meals daily. ## Nutrisystem _Meals and snacks are portion-controlled_ This system is based on portion control. Users lost an average of 4% more than controls. None of the studies of this plan extend beyond three months, however, so the diet’s long-term effectiveness is not known. Most of those studied were also older than those in trials of other diet programs. ## Low-fat _Less fat means more veggies–and more carbs_ After decades of reigning supreme, the low-fat strategy for weight loss is coming under fire. Cutting fat led people to eat more carbs and sugar, which can cause weight gain. While a low-fat diet is still advised to maintain a healthy heart, studies show slashing fat may not be the most efficient way to slim down. ## Low-carb _A high-fiber, low-carb diet leads to less eating_ Under the flagship of Atkins, these diets cut back on starchy and sugary foods like rice, pasta and fruit and are more lenient about fats from meat and dairy. Recent studies found that’s a good way to lose weight, since cutting carbs meant dieters ate more fiber, which helps people feel fuller on fewer calories. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3814977/dieters-dilemma/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3814977/dieters-dilemma/"},"headline":"Dieter's Dilemma","datePublished":"2015-04-09T11:42:51.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T06:15:45.534Z","description":"Science weighs in on which popular weight-loss plans truly work","url":"https://time.com/3814977/dieters-dilemma/","keywords":["Weight loss"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdd94fcfb4dd5919e/6988c14ffb4eac158189161e/time-health-stock-weight-loss-4.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Alice Park","jobTitle":"Senior Correspondent","url":"https://time.com/author/alice-park/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltdd94fcfb4dd5919e/6988c14ffb4eac158189161e/time-health-stock-weight-loss-4.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"time-health-stock-weight-loss","caption":"A Broken Paper Plate","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3814977/dieters-dilemma/","name":"Dieter's Dilemma"}}]}] ```