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Regular Fasting Linked to

Less Severe COVID: Study
Marlene Busko
August 10, 2022

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Editor's note: Find the latest COVID-19 news and

guidance in Medscape's Coronavirus Resource
Center.

Intermittent fasting was not linked with a smaller

chance of getting COVID-19, but it was linked with
getting a less severe infection, according to the
findings of a new study.

The study was done on men and women in Utah

who were, on average, in their 60s and got
COVID before vaccines were available.

Roughly 1 in 3 people in Utah fast from time to

time – higher than in other states. This is partly
because more than 60% of people in Utah belong
to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,
and roughly 40% of them fast – typically skipping
two meals in a row.

Those who fasted, on average, for a day a month

over the past 40 years were not less likely to get
COVID, but they were less likely to be
hospitalized or die from the virus.

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"Intermittent fasting has already shown to lower

inflammation and improve cardiovascular health,"
lead study author Benjamin Horne, PhD, of
Intermountain Medical Center Heart Institute in
Salt Lake City, said in a statement.

"In this study, we're finding additional benefits

when it comes to battling an infection of COVID-
19 in patients who have been fasting for decades,"
he said.

The study was published in BMJ Nutrition,

Prevention & Health.

Intermittent Fasting Not a Substitute

for a COVID-19 Vaccine

Importantly, intermittent fasting shouldn't be seen

as a substitute for getting a COVID vaccine, the
researchers stress. Rather, periodic fasting might
be a health habit to consider, since it is also linked
to a lower risk of diabetes and heart disease, for
example.

But anyone who wants to consider intermittent

fasting should consult their doctor first, Horne
stressed, especially if they are elderly, pregnant,
or have diabetes, heart disease, or kidney
disease.

Fasting Didn't Prevent COVID-19 but

Made It Less Severe

In their study, the team looked at data from 1,524

adults who were seen in the cardiac
catheterization lab at Intermountain Medical
Center Heart Institute, completed a survey, and
had a test for the virus that causes COVID-19 from
March 16, 2020, to Feb. 25, 2021.

Of these patients, 205 tested positive for COVID,

and of these, 73 reported that they had fasted
regularly at least once a month.

Similar numbers of patients got COVID-19

whether they had, or had not, fasted regularly
(14%, versus 13%).

But among those who tested positive for the virus,

fewer patients were hospitalized for COVID or
died during the study follow-up if they had fasted
regularly (11%) than if they had not fasted regularly
(29%).

Even when the analyses were adjusted for age,

smoking, alcohol use, ethnicity, history of heart
disease, and other factors, periodic fasting was
still an independent predictor of a lower risk of
hospitalization or death.

Several things may explain the findings, the

researchers suggest.

A loss of appetite is a typical response to

infection, they note.

Fasting reduces inflammation, and after 12 to 14

hours of fasting, the body switches from using
glucose in the blood to using ketones, including
linoleic acid.

"There's a pocket on the surface of SARS-CoV-2

that linoleic acid fits into – and can make the virus
less able to attach to other cells," Horne said.

Intermittent fasting also promotes autophagy, he

noted, which is "the body's recycling system that
helps your body destroy and recycle damaged
and infected cells."

The researchers conclude that intermittent fasting

plans should be investigated in further research
"as a complementary therapy to vaccines to
reduce COVID-19 severity, both during the
pandemic and post pandemic, since repeat
vaccinations cannot be performed every few
months indefinitely for the entire world and
vaccine access is limited in many nations."

Sources

Intermountain Healthcare: "New Intermountain

Healthcare Study Finds People Who Practice
Intermittent Fasting Experience Less Severe
Complications from COVID-19."

BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health: "Association

of periodic fasting with lower severity of COVID-19
outcomes in the SARS-CoV-2 prevaccine era: an
observational cohort from the INSPIRE registry"

Intermountain Healthcare Biological Samples

Collection Project and Investigational Registry
(INSPIRE).

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Cite this: Regular Fasting Linked to Less Severe COVID:

Study - Medscape - Aug 10, 2022.

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