MedCentral: Pros and cons of intermittent fasting on cardiovascular health

The University of Cincinnati's Richard Becker commented to MedCentral on a recent study that found people who limit their eating to an 8-hour period each day had a 91% greater risk of cardiovascular death than those who ate during a window of 12 to 16 hours.

This method of restricted eating is often called intermittent fasting or time-restricted eating (TRE). Researchers also found that study participants living with heart disease faced a 66% higher risk of death from heart disease or stroke, while TRE did not appear to reduce the risk of death from any cause.

Becker suggested caution in coming to any concrete conclusions on the risks and benefits of TRE at this point.

"There may be favorable metabolic trends, such as improving insulin resistance and glycemic control,” associated with intermittent fasting, said Becker, professor, director and physician-in-chief at the UC Heart, Lung and Vascular Institute and UC Division of Cardiovascular Health and Disease at the UC College of Medicine. But, he added, “we do not have sufficiently strong or convincing evidence that time-restricted eating is either efficacious or safe. Further research will be required before recommendations to the public can be made.”

Read the MedCentral article.

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