Intermittent fasting divides the day or week into fasting and eating periods.

Intermittent fasting is one of the most popular health and fitness trends right now. It is often used to lose weight. Weight loss is also associated with improved health and overall well-being. This is an eating pattern that divides the day or week into fasting and eating periods. Most diets tell you what to eat. On the other hand, mini-fasting focuses on when you eat. People who practice intermittent fasting typically extend their sleep by skipping breakfast. They have lunch around noon and then an early dinner by 8pm.

Intermittent fasting has become a popular trend on social media. Many celebrities also attribute their body changes to intermittent fasting. However, recent research has highlighted the downsides of intermittent fasting.

The study highlights that restricting eating time to just eight hours a day is associated with a 91% increased risk of death from heart disease.

The study results were announced Monday in Chicago.

Details from research

Researchers studied a group of 20,000 adults. Looking at dietary patterns, the researchers concluded that participants who practiced intermittent fasting were 91% more likely to die from heart disease than those who did not.

Additionally, people with pre-existing heart disease had a 66% higher risk of dying from heart disease or stroke.

“Time-restricted eating is a popular means of reducing calorie intake,” Keith Fullen, emeritus professor of human metabolism at the University of Oxford, said in a statement to the UK Science Media Centre. “This study is very important in demonstrating the need for long-term research into the effects of this practice. However, this summary leaves many questions unanswered.”

The study results were presented at the American Heart Association’s Epidemiology and Prevention, Lifestyle, and Cardiometabolic Scientific Sessions 2024, held March 18-21 in Chicago.

The AHA also said the study results are considered preliminary until published as a full manuscript in a peer-reviewed scientific journal.

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