Twenty patients with arthritis and various skin diseases were studied on a metabolic ward during a 2-week period of modified fast followed by a 3-week period of vegetarian diet. During fasting, arthralgia was less intense in many subjects. In some types of skin diseases (pustulosis palmaris et plantaris and atopic eczema) an improvement could be demonstrated during the fast.… Read More

Five obese subjects were studied when they were on a 3.35 MJ (800 kcal)-diet, 1.67 MJ (400 kcal) diet and during total starvation. Urine excretion of sodium and dopamine and plasma renin activity (PRA) and plasma aldosterone levels were measured. Urine sodium excretion increased from 88 +/- 9.8 mmol/d before starvation to 150 +/- 15.7 mmol/d on day 4 of starvation. Dopamine excretion increased… Read More

24 young, military subjects participated in a ranger training course of 5 days' duration with prolonged, heavy physical exercise and sleep deprivation. The subjects were divided into two groups showing either large calorie deficiency or nearly isocaloric status. An oral glucose tolerance test was performed on the subjects on day 5 on the course and in a control experiment 8 weeks after… Read More

The effects of fasting for 7 days were investigated in 13 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in comparison with a control regimen in a cross-over trial. The effects of fasting on clinical performance and blood neutrophil functions were studied. During fasting, with a mean weight loss of 5.1 kg, clinical inflammation in the joints and the erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) decreased.… Read More

Retrospective examination of weekly electrocardiograms of 13 patients on zero calorie intake for 97 +/- 25.4 d (mean +/- standard deviation) for morbid obesity demonstrated a significant progressive reduction in QRS voltage by the seventh week. There was a significant prolongation of the QTc interval in the group during the eighth week and in seven patients the QTc had lengthened beyond normal… Read More

The effects of vegetarian fasting were evaluated in 14 grossly obese patients who participated in a program comprising 5 weeks' fasting in a lactovegetarian health center. Before and after the fasting period the patients were hospitalized and put on a standardized weight-maintaining diet; at the health center they consumed vegetable juices containing less than 1 MJ and 3… Read More

The effect of five weeks fasting on body weight, lean body mass and fat weight was studied in 14 obese subjects (BW 92-200 kg, Broca's index 1.3-2.4). Before and after treatment the patients were hospitalized and put on a standardized weight maintaining diet, and variables reflecting thyroid function were compared before and after weight reduction. There was a… Read More

1. The blood concentrations of 3-hydroxybutyrate and alanine were measured before and after they were separately injected into obese patients who were taking a 1.68 MJ (400 kcal) diet and again when they had starved for 4 days and 28 days. 2. The disappearance of the injected metabolite was exponential and its half-life and volume of distribution were calculated. 3. The… Read More