Diet advice tailored to your genes helped people lose weight: about half a kilo more

Nutrigenetic tests promise diet and exercise advice matched to your DNA. A systematic review and meta-analysis published in Nutrition Reviews on 24 September 2026, by researchers in Iran, asked whether that advice works better for weight than the conventional kind. They searched four databases up to March 2026, screened 6,175 records and found 8 clinical trials that compared the two.

People who got genetics-based advice lost 0.52 kg more body weight than those given conventional advice, and their BMI fell 0.30 points more. The weight result only just reached statistical significance (the 95% confidence interval ran from 1.04 kg to 0.003 kg). Body fat percentage did not differ between the groups.

The authors call the effect small but significant and ask for more well-designed trials. Eight trials is a thin base, and it is hard to tell whether the benefit comes from the genetic information itself or from the extra attention and motivation that a personal report can bring. For now, the basics of a healthy weight work for every genotype.