Is Skipping Meals a Bad Idea for Your Heart? We Know What Is Below.

The Most Recent

You may have read the headlines, "The intermittent fasting trend may pose risks to your heart" or "Intermittent fasting linked to 91 percent increase in risk of death from heart disease."

The information was derived from an abstract that was given on Monday at a Chicago conference of the American Heart Association. The study has numerous limitations, according to specialists, and it hasn't yet been published in a peer-reviewed publication. We know the following.

The Context

Cycling between eating and fasting for predetermined amounts of time is known as intermittent fasting. For instance, eating solely inside an eight-hour window per day is a frequent strategy, according to University of Illinois at Chicago nutrition professor Krista Varady.

According to her, a number of brief studies have revealed that this eating pattern may help some people lose weight, reduce blood pressure, and enhance blood sugar regulation.

However, according to Victor Wenze Zhong, the principal author of the new study and an epidemiologist at Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine in China, the longest intermittent fasting trial lasted just a single year. He stated that his goal was to consider long-term health.

The Study

Over 20,000 adult US participants were included in the new study. Less than two weeks separated the two interviews the participants conducted regarding their prior day's eating schedule. According to Dr. Zhong, the researchers then determined the participants' average eating windows and took that to be their regular schedule for the remainder of the trial. The subjects were monitored for eight years on average.

The patients who restricted their daily eating to eight hours had a 91 percent higher risk of dying from cardiovascular disease during that period, according to the researchers, than those who had food throughout a 12- to 16-hour period.

However, according to Dr. Zhong, there were only 414 participants in the eight-hour eating group. In addition, compared to the other participants, they were more likely to smoke, have lower incomes and fewer access to food, and be younger and less educated.

According to Dr. Zhong, the researchers' analysis took these issues into consideration. However, the study simply found a correlation between the two; it did not demonstrate that this eating pattern contributed to cardiovascular disease mortality.

The Restrictions

It's difficult to assess the study thoroughly because it hasn't been published or subjected to peer review, according to Dr. Varady.

According to Dr. Varady, a "major limitation" of the study is that it only used two reports to fairly depict people's regular eating patterns; also, it did not appear to assess the kind of meals that participants consumed.

Tufts University medical professor and cardiologist Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian referred to the findings as "very problematic." According to him, a large number of individuals in the eight-hour eating group might have been extremely busy or dealing with other issues that prevented them from eating regularly or at all.

According to Satchidananda Panda, a professor at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in San Diego, the group may have also included individuals who were already in poor health. For example, those with eating disorders or illnesses that decreased their appetite might have eaten during a shorter window.

It's also unclear why intermittent fasting could be particularly damaging if it is. According to Dr. Zhong, the purpose of his research was not to address that query.

Next Steps

Dr. Zhong stated that more studies are required to assess the long-term health effects of intermittent fasting.

According to Dr. Pam Taub, a cardiologist at the University of California, San Diego, intermittent fasting isn't suitable for everyone. However, a lot of her patients have benefited from it, such as having lower cholesterol.

According to Dr. Taub, her patients are now "confused and scared" by the headlines they are reading. She added that patients should always see their doctor before making any dietary or lifestyle changes, but she won't advise them to do anything in light of this study.