Periodic Fasting: A Strategy for Improving Cardiometabolic Parameters and Antioxidant Levels in Obesity

Objective: Obesity is associated with decreased antioxidant activity, such as Superoxide Dismutase (SOD), and due to metabolic switching processes, Periodic Fasting (PF) as a potential therapeutic approach must be further studied. The study aimed to analyze the effects of PF on cardiometabolic parameters, metabolic switches, and antioxidant levels. Material and Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study conducted in Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia, consisting of the intervention (PFG) group, which received PF for 10 days, and the Control Group (CG), which had daily meals. The measurements of metabolic parameters, such as anthropometric parameters, fasting blood glucose (FBG), total cholesterol (TC), β-Hydroxybutyrate (β-HB), and antioxidant level, were taken pre and post-intervention. Results: Thirty-six young adult men participated in this study. After 10 days, there was a significant improvement in most cardiometabolic parameters in the PFG group (p-value<0.05), including a reduction in FBG and TC (p-value<0.05). In the PFG group, the post-test mean β-HB level was significantly higher than the pre-test (21.48±8.86 vs. 15.63±3.71, p-value<0.05), and the mean SOD level also increased (76.64±3.62 vs. 73.56±4.10, p-value<0.05).There was a negative correlation between PF and the difference (Δ) in FBG (p=0.000) and between post-test SOD, abdominal circumference (AC), and body weight (BW) (p=0.041, p-value<0.05). Conclusion: The ability of PF to improve cardiometabolic parameters, including metabolic switch and antioxidant levels, makes it a feasible dietary intervention for obesity-related and associated health problems.