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RISKS OF INTERMITTENT FASTING While intermittent fasting may offer benefits, it also carries risks for older adults—especially those with existing health conditions.  “If someone has medical

conditions like hypertension or diabetes, they might want to work with their primary care physician to develop a strategy that is more individualized,” says Koncilja. Here are a few

conditions that he said may require special considerations: * CANCER: Individuals undergoing treatment may need higher protein and calorie intake, which can be difficult to achieve with

time-restricted eating. * HYPERTENSION: Fasting may increase the risk of orthostatic hypotension, a condition where blood pressure drops with changes in position, leading to dizziness or

lightheadedness. * DIABETES: Going long periods of time without eating can disrupt insulin secretion and glucagon storage, making blood sugar harder to manage. If you have diabetes,

intermittent fasting can be risky. Consider medical supervision to ensure it’s done safely and effectively, says Koncilja. He recommends using a continuous glucose monitor (CGM), which helps

track how the body responds to different “food choices, environments and activities—including time-restricted feeding.” OTHER COMMON RISKS FOR OLDER ADULTS: * INADEQUATE PROTEIN INTAKE: A

common issue with intermittent fasting is not getting enough protein during eating windows, which can lead to sarcopenia (muscle loss) and osteopenia (bone loss). Make sure to track your

protein and read nutritional information. * DEHYDRATION AND ELECTROLYTE IMBALANCE: Clean fasting —allowing only zero-calorie drinks—can make it harder to stay properly hydrated and maintain

electrolyte, raising the risk of orthostatic hypotension—dizziness or lightheadedness when standing up. * MUSCLE LOSS: Experts stress that any fasting routine should be accompanied by

exercise. “People who become inactive quickly lose muscle mass,” says Panda, whose research demonstrated that intermittent fasting improves cholesterol and blood pressure in firefighters. He

recommends brisk walking 30 to 45 minutes every day and simple strength training exercises to maintain your muscle — a particular concern for older individuals. * TAKE MEDICATIONS WITH

FOOD: Some medications must be taken with meals to avoid nausea or stomach irritation. * USE HEART OR BLOOD PRESSURE MEDICATIONS: These can affect potassium and sodium levels, which may be

further disrupted by fasting. * HAVE A HISTORY OF EATING DISORDERS: Fasting can trigger disordered eating patterns and should be approached with caution. MAKE FASTING SAFER BY: * Talking to

your primary care provider about your approach * Tracking your carbohydrates, fats and proteins to ensure you are getting the amount your body needs. * Know that most studies show that

fasting does not cause hypothyroidism and won’t worsen existing thyroid problems BENEFITS OF INTERMITTENT FASTING While fasting may sound extreme. Is it safe for people over 50? The answer

seems to be mostly “yes,” and there’s a lot to recommend it. “In studies of one to two years, we’ve seen weight and fat loss, metabolic health improvements, particularly [type 2] diabetes,

and improvements in memory and physical function,” says Sai Das, a senior scientist on the Energy Metabolism Team at Tufts University’s Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging, who has

studied the strategy.  MOST ARE SUCCESSFUL AND SEE RESULTS: For instance, in a recent study in the journal, _Experimental Gerontology_, 108 overweight men and women, 65 to 74, either

practiced six weeks of time-restricted eating or got educational materials. The vast majority of the fasting group was able to avoid eating for 16 hours (from 8 pm to 12 noon the following

day). That group significantly lowered their body mass index, or BMI, without decreasing their bone density, which can be a risk when losing weight. Men in the study also saw a significant

reduction in waist circumference and visceral fat — the fat around the abdominal organs. And a large meta-analysis of 23 studies involving overweight or obese people up to their early 70s

found that a variety of intermittent fasting approaches significantly reduced waist circumference and fat mass, plus levels of insulin, fasting glucose, total and LDL (bad) cholesterol and

triglycerides, a particularly dangerous type of blood fat at high levels. Other studies suggest intermittent fasting can quell inflammation, which fuels many chronic diseases and cancer.

COGNITIVE SUPPORT: Inflammation is a potential culprit in dementia as well. And new data reported in 2024 in _Cell Metabolism_ suggest that strategic fasting may defend the brain against

cognitive decline. “This was the first study in humans to look at the effects of intermittent fasting on cognition and the brain,” says study author Mark Mattson, adjunct professor of

neuroscience at the Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore. In the study, 40 people ages 55 to 70 were assigned either to the 5:2

fasting plan or to a generally healthy diet. The fasting group lost more weight, plus they saw greater improvements on tests of executive function and memory. CELLULAR REJUVENATION: Although

most people who try intermittent fasting do so to shed pounds, there are clearly other perks that seem to be independent of the weight loss. “Even without weight loss, we think that this

type of restricted eating can contribute to the metabolic fitness of cells,” says Miriam Merad, M.D., chair of immunology and immunotherapy at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine. That means

cells appear healthier and even biologically younger in people following this type of diet, as reported in a study in _Nature Communications_ in 2024. LONGEVITY AND INFLAMMATION CONTROL:

Changes at the cellular level, not all of which are understood, seem to produce the positive outcomes associated with intermittent fasting. For example, fasting raises levels of a chemical

in the body that activates longevity genes known as sirtuins. Sirtuins protect against disease, boost the repair of DNA, and quell the inflammation behind arthritis, atherosclerosis, asthma

and other chronic conditions. CIRCADIAN RHYTHM AND DIGESTION: Intermittent fasting supports the body's circadian clock, says Panda, which regulates the body's sleep/wake cycle.

“Repair happens during sleep,” he says. It takes about five hours to digest the last meal of the day. “If dinner is at 6 p.m., the gut is still working until 11 pm. Downtime for repair

happens after that. The gut needs seven hours of downtime” for repair. This schedule also supports healthy insulin levels, important for diabetes risk. One study that got lots of attention

in early 2024, but hasn’t been peer-reviewed or published yet, suggested that intermittent fasting may cause heart problems. But it’s been widely questioned as being a look-back study based

on only two days of self-reported food logs. RESULTS IN ADULTS WITH OBESITY: Most recently, a 2025 study in Nature Medicine found that 8-hour time-restricted eating led to weight loss and

improved health in adults ages 30 to 60 with obesity, compared to a Mediterranean diet, regardless of meal timing. The results suggest time-restricted eating is an effective dietary

strategy, though more research is needed in diverse populations.