Health Effects of a Diet that Mimics Fasting

NIH | JULY 26, 2015

Dietary restriction has been shown in a variety of animal models to have many health benefits. Fasting, in which food isn’t consumed (but water is), represents the extreme form of restriction. Previous studies in animals and people suggested that periodic cycles of fasting may improve certain metabolic and immune functions.

A team at the University of Southern California studied diets designed to mimic the beneficial effects of fasting while minimizing the risks and difficulty associated with complete food restriction.

The team first tested cycles of prolonged fasting in yeast, a single-celled organism.

They next tested a very low-calorie, low-protein diet in mice. The mice overate during these phases so that their overall calorie intake was similar to mice continuously fed a regular diet.

Mice fed the diet twice a month for several months had various metabolic changes, including lower blood glucose and insulin levels, than mice fed a control diet. These metabolic markers all returned to normal levels during periods of re-feeding.

The team next conducted a pilot study in a small group of people. Nineteen healthy adults consumed a proprietary plant-based diet that provided between 34% and 54% of the normal caloric intake with at least 9–10% protein, 34–47% carbohydrate, and 44–56% fat. Participants consumed the diet 5 days a month for 3 months (3 cycles), resuming their normal diet at the end of each diet period.

People on the diet had improvements in blood glucose and decreased body weight compared to the control group. Those with initially elevated C-reactive protein levels (a marker of heart disease risk) had lower levels, while those with normal levels had no change. Reports of side effects were low and included fatigue, weakness, and headache.

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