'Fast once a month to avoid heart disease'

Last updated at 14:38 06 November 2007


Skipping meals for one day a month could reduce the risk of heart disease, researchers said today.

They found that people who routinely fasted - most of whom were Mormons - had reduced rates of coronary artery disease.

The theory first came to light in the Seventies, but two studies of more than 5,000 people today suggest that missing two consecutive meals benefits health.

Benjamin Horne, of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, said 61 per cent of Mormons in the first study group were diagnosed with coronary artery disease, compared with 66 per cent of those who were not Mormons.

Coronary artery disease is the narrowing of arteries that carry oxygenated blood to the heart and can lead to heart attacks and sudden death.

Dr Horne, who presented the research at the American Heart Association conference, said: "Fasting was the strongest predictor of lower heart disease risk in the people we surveyed. About eight per cent of those who fasted did not express a (Mormon) religious preference, and they also had less coronary disease."

However, he warned that the results could be skewed by other lifestyle factors and that people with diabetes should not skip meals.

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