Intermittent fasting and a no-sugar diet for Long COVID symptoms: a randomized crossover trial
Abstract Long COVID (LC) is a common chronic health condition that impairs daily functioning and social connections. This is the first randomized clinical trial to directly compare the effect of two Intermittent Fasting regimens on LC symptoms. The main objectives of this 10-week randomized cross-ov...
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Nature Portfolio
2025-07-01
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-07461-0 |
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| author | Thomas Bunker Benjamin D. Horne Mark D. Baldwin Robert Sorrells Sabrina Turner Laynee Laube Ari Solomon Lucy A. Horne Jeffrey Novack |
| author_facet | Thomas Bunker Benjamin D. Horne Mark D. Baldwin Robert Sorrells Sabrina Turner Laynee Laube Ari Solomon Lucy A. Horne Jeffrey Novack |
| author_sort | Thomas Bunker |
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| description | Abstract Long COVID (LC) is a common chronic health condition that impairs daily functioning and social connections. This is the first randomized clinical trial to directly compare the effect of two Intermittent Fasting regimens on LC symptoms. The main objectives of this 10-week randomized cross-over trial are to compare the efficacy and safety of 4 weeks of 1–2 day fasting plus a restricted diet vs 4 weeks of mild time-restricted eating (TRE) and a restricted diet in reducing patient-reported LC symptoms. After a 2-week run-in, subjects were randomized to treatment A (TRE) or treatment B (Fasting) for 4 weeks. Subjects then crossed over to the other treatment for 4 weeks. The median fasting duration was 38 h (night-day-night), and the mean duration was 42 h. Symptoms were assessed via weekly online surveys. Primary outcomes were changes in LC symptom severity scores (LC-Scores) and in the number of LC symptoms (numLCsym) between treatments. Secondary outcomes were changes in LC-Scores and numLCsym over the 10-week trial. Fasting was superior to TRE alone in reducing LC-Scores (p = 0.008). The numLCsym decreased − 5.0 during the Fasting 4 weeks vs − 1.4 in the TRE 4 weeks (p = 0.002). Altogether, the 10-week regimen of a no-sugar diet, TRE and Fasting decreased the mean LC-Score by 51.8% (p < 0.0001) from 37.8 to 18.2. Similarly, numLCsym decreased from 20.5 to 12.2, a decrease of 40.6% (p < 0.0001). No major adverse safety events were recorded. Both intermittent fasting interventions decreased symptoms over the 10-week trial but the more intense fasting regimen was significantly better. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier NCT06214455. |
| format | Article |
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| institution | Kabale University |
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| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
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| spelling | doaj-art-63ee2487e9f741aa8e6a8033e528de6f2025-08-20T03:45:57ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-07-0115111510.1038/s41598-025-07461-0Intermittent fasting and a no-sugar diet for Long COVID symptoms: a randomized crossover trialThomas Bunker0Benjamin D. Horne1Mark D. Baldwin2Robert Sorrells3Sabrina Turner4Laynee Laube5Ari Solomon6Lucy A. Horne7Jeffrey Novack8Independent Patient ResearcherIntermountain Medical Center Heart InstituteArkansas Colleges of Health Education/Arkansas College of Osteopathic MedicinePacific Northwest University of Health SciencesUniversity of Nebraska Medical CenterUniversity of Washington, UW MedicineCommunity Memorial Health SystemStatistics Department, Utah State UniversityArkansas Colleges of Health Education/Arkansas College of Osteopathic MedicineAbstract Long COVID (LC) is a common chronic health condition that impairs daily functioning and social connections. This is the first randomized clinical trial to directly compare the effect of two Intermittent Fasting regimens on LC symptoms. The main objectives of this 10-week randomized cross-over trial are to compare the efficacy and safety of 4 weeks of 1–2 day fasting plus a restricted diet vs 4 weeks of mild time-restricted eating (TRE) and a restricted diet in reducing patient-reported LC symptoms. After a 2-week run-in, subjects were randomized to treatment A (TRE) or treatment B (Fasting) for 4 weeks. Subjects then crossed over to the other treatment for 4 weeks. The median fasting duration was 38 h (night-day-night), and the mean duration was 42 h. Symptoms were assessed via weekly online surveys. Primary outcomes were changes in LC symptom severity scores (LC-Scores) and in the number of LC symptoms (numLCsym) between treatments. Secondary outcomes were changes in LC-Scores and numLCsym over the 10-week trial. Fasting was superior to TRE alone in reducing LC-Scores (p = 0.008). The numLCsym decreased − 5.0 during the Fasting 4 weeks vs − 1.4 in the TRE 4 weeks (p = 0.002). Altogether, the 10-week regimen of a no-sugar diet, TRE and Fasting decreased the mean LC-Score by 51.8% (p < 0.0001) from 37.8 to 18.2. Similarly, numLCsym decreased from 20.5 to 12.2, a decrease of 40.6% (p < 0.0001). No major adverse safety events were recorded. Both intermittent fasting interventions decreased symptoms over the 10-week trial but the more intense fasting regimen was significantly better. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier NCT06214455.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-07461-0Long COVIDCrossover trialIntermittent fastingTime-restricted eatingNo-sugar dietAutophagy |
| spellingShingle | Thomas Bunker Benjamin D. Horne Mark D. Baldwin Robert Sorrells Sabrina Turner Laynee Laube Ari Solomon Lucy A. Horne Jeffrey Novack Intermittent fasting and a no-sugar diet for Long COVID symptoms: a randomized crossover trial Scientific Reports Long COVID Crossover trial Intermittent fasting Time-restricted eating No-sugar diet Autophagy |
| title | Intermittent fasting and a no-sugar diet for Long COVID symptoms: a randomized crossover trial |
| title_full | Intermittent fasting and a no-sugar diet for Long COVID symptoms: a randomized crossover trial |
| title_fullStr | Intermittent fasting and a no-sugar diet for Long COVID symptoms: a randomized crossover trial |
| title_full_unstemmed | Intermittent fasting and a no-sugar diet for Long COVID symptoms: a randomized crossover trial |
| title_short | Intermittent fasting and a no-sugar diet for Long COVID symptoms: a randomized crossover trial |
| title_sort | intermittent fasting and a no sugar diet for long covid symptoms a randomized crossover trial |
| topic | Long COVID Crossover trial Intermittent fasting Time-restricted eating No-sugar diet Autophagy |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-07461-0 |
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