In the control group, less than half experienced improvements in their symptoms. The improvement was likely a result of natural symptom fluctuations in Crohn\u2019s disease and because patients continued to follow their standard care regimens, such as taking medications.<\/p>\n
Some participants in the fasting mimicking group experienced fatigue and headache, Sinha said, but no serious side effects were reported.<\/p>\n
Biological indicators get a boost<\/p>\n
Sinha was inspired to study the fasting mimicking diet in patients with Crohn\u2019s disease after earlier research indicated the diet could reduce levels of C-reactive protein, a common marker of systemic inflammation in patients who had high baseline C-reactive protein levels. \u201cThe effects seen on inflammatory markers made this an appealing diet to study in Crohn\u2019s disease since many patients with this disease also have elevated inflammatory markers,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Along with tracking participants\u2019 clinical response and remission, the researchers also explored changes in biological specimens, such as shifts in common markers of inflammation in both stool and blood. \u201cOur goal in collecting these and other biospecimens was to dig deeper into why there\u2019s this differential response,\u201d Sinha said. \u201cCan we find mechanisms to explain the findings and signatures that might help predict patients who will respond to the diet?\u201d<\/p>\n
The researchers found a significant decline in fecal calprotectin, a protein in the stool that indicates gut inflammation, in the fasting mimicking group compared with the control group. Some inflammation-promoting lipid mediators derived from fatty acids also declined in fasting mimicking group participants. Similarly, the immune cells of fasting mimicking group participants produced fewer of several types of inflammatory molecules. The researchers are now exploring whether changes in the gut microbiome may also help explain some of the benefits of the fasting mimicking diet.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s still a lot more to be done to understand the biology behind how this and other diets work in patients with Crohn\u2019s disease,\u201d Sinha said.<\/p>\n