BATON ROUGE - Studies show that intermittent fasting may help people lose weight and is easier to keep up with then traditional calorie counting, or restricting the amount of calories consumed in a day. 

Research on animals suggests that intermittent fasting slows aging and contributes to a longer life span. 

Researchers at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center and the University of Birmingham are looking for healthy adults aged 18-49 to participate in a study to see if eating for 8 hours a day and fasting for the remaining 16 hours can slow the aging process in people. 

The study called, DiAL-Health will use both the intermittent fasting and calorie restriction methods to determine if weight loss can slow aging and improve health in people that are healthy or slightly overweight. The study will also determine if either eating plan can improve "healthspan" – the length of your life that you are free of diseases like diabetes or high blood pressure.

Dr. Corby Martin, Professor and Director of the Ingestive Behavior, Weight Management and Health Promotion Laboratory at Pennington Biomedical; Dr. Leanne Redman, Professor and Director of Pennington Biomedical’s Reproductive Endocrinology and Women’s Health Laboratory; and Dr. Courtney Peterson from the University of Alabama at Birmingham are leading the study.

“We have known for almost a hundred years that eating less extends an animal’s healthspan and lifespan,” Martin said. “Although eating less also slows aging in humans, it can be difficult to follow. Recently, however, studies have shown that intermittent fasting affects aging in a similar way in animals. Since intermittent fasting may be easier to follow than calorie counting, we are excited to see if intermittent fasting may be an easier way to become healthy and slow the aging process.”

Dr. Redman said that this study is particularly innovative as “it will use newly developed smartphone apps to help people stick with the program with minimal support from health coaches.”

To qualify for the study, participants should have a body mass index between 22-30; and not smoke, vape or use tobacco products currently or within the last 6 months. Participants will be compensated up to $2,500 for the completion of the study.

People interested in participating in the Baton Rouge trial should call 225-763-3000, email clinicaltrials@pbrc.edu, or visit www.pbrc.edu/DialHealth. 

“Obesity is one of the most prevalent and deadly diseases nationally,” said Dr. John Kirwan, Executive Director of Pennington Biomedical Research Center. “This study is an important contribution to our understanding of how intermittent fasting can help individuals to lose or maintain weight.”