Practicality of intermittent fasting in humans and its effect on oxidative stress and genes related to aging and metabolism.

ABSTRACT: Caloric restriction has consistently been shown to extend life span and ameliorate aging-related diseases. These effects may be due to diet-induced reactive oxygen species acting to up-regulate sirtuins and related protective pathways, which research suggests may be partially inhibited by dietary anti-oxidant supplementation. Because caloric restriction is not sustainable long term for most humans, we investigated an alternative dietary approach, intermittent fasting (IF), which is proposed to act on similar biological pathways. We hypothesized that a modified IF diet, where participants maintain overall energy balance by alternating between days of fasting (25% of normal caloric intake) and feasting (175% of normal), would increase expression of genes associated with aging and reduce oxid

SUBMITTER: Wegman MP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4403246 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature