Vegetarian Fasting of Obese Patients: A Clinical and Biochemical Evaluation

Abstract

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 g of protein per day. The weight reduction (mean ± S.D.) was 13.4 ± 5.0 kg (from 132.0 ± 27.2 to 118.6 ± 16.1 kg). Except for the first few days the patients had no severe hunger sensations. No severe adverse clinical effects were noted. The laboratory status—comprising serum or plasma levels of minerals, protein, and lipids; hematological data; and variables reflecting liver and thyroid function—revealed abnormal group mean values only for ferritin and the acute-phase reactants haptoglobin, C-reactive protein, and anti-chymotrypsin in the obese. The levels of potassium, retinol-binding protein, and haptoglobin decreased, and aminotransferase and lactate dehydrogenase activities and free fatty acid and glycerol concentrations increased as a result of the fasting. The most striking effect of the weight reduction was an increase in the HDL cholesterol levels. Fasting according to the described regimen thus seems to provide a safe method for treatment of obese patients.

Key-words:

• Body weight, reduction
• cholesterol, HDL
• fasting
• obesity treatment
• vegetarian