Not So Fast? Intermittent Fasting and Medication

Intermittent fasting has been an emerging trend talked about by many. This could be fueled by the novel idea of focusing less on what you eat (and counting calories along the way) and instead on when you eat has been appealing to many people looking to lose weight.  

What Is Intermittent Fasting?
Intermittent fasting—also known as time-restricted eating—is a manner of controlling the amount of food you eat and reducing calories by only eating during specified periods of time. While there are other more extreme variations that involve going without food for up to 24 hours at a time, one of the more attainable options is called 16:8 fasting. In this plan, an individual fasts for 16 hours and then “breaks their fast” to eat during the next eight hours. 

As a reminder, we recommend talking to your healthcare provider before starting any new eating plan or diet. 

The Buzz Around Intermittent Fasting
One of the big appeals of intermittent fasting is that because you eat only during a specified window of time, you’re able to reduce calorie consumption simply by not having the freedom to eat whenever. This may appeal especially to people who have gained excess weight due to habits like grazing on unhealthy foods throughout the day and night and eating when not truly hungry.

Researchers who have studied intermittent fasting as a method to lose weight have found it can be successful—for some. In a 2020 review of 27 different clinical studies of intermittent fasting, participants experienced weight loss of anywhere from 0.8% to 13.0% of their original body weight. The same review also found intermittent fasting to be comparable with traditional calorie restriction and even may improve glycemic control in those with type 2 diabetes.

Who Is Intermittent Fasting For?
The truth is, a strict intermittent fasting eating schedule like you see online may not be the best fit for you—especially if you’ve been prescribed medication that is recommended to be taken with food. The fasting periods can be too long in between the scheduled doses of your medication.

Even people who haven’t been prescribed a medication that must be taken with food can experience side effects that come with going without food, like headaches and constipation, when they do intermittent fasting. Some bodies may prefer a few, smaller meals eaten throughout the day rather than going long stretches without sustenance.

Another watch out with intermittent fasting is the potential to eat too much during your eating window—a kind of laissez-faire mindset of “I can eat whatever I want during this time period.” In this way, intermittent fasting may not be supportive for people trying to manage emotional eating and food cravings. 

Adapting Intermittent Fasting 
Talk to your healthcare provider before starting any type of intermittent fasting or similar eating plan. Work with them to develop a plan that takes your medication schedule into consideration. You should take CONTRAVE and other medications exactly as directed by your healthcare provider.

Even if you aren’t following a strict plan, there are still key learnings from the intermittent fasting method that could be incorporated into an individual’s healthy eating plan:

• Adjust the fast so that it encompasses a period of time in between medication doses. For example, eat breakfast around 6 or 7 am (and take the morning dose of medication) and then eat dinner at 6 or 7 pm (and take the evening dose of medication).
• Take your medication in the morning with very low-calorie food (like water-dense fruits) to not break your fast.
• Stay hydrated throughout the day—water has zero calories and doesn’t break a fast.
• Create strict “no-snack” periods of time during the day. For example, if you tend to reach for some chips during a mid-afternoon slump, make the hours between lunch and dinner a personal “fasting” time to help reduce the number of calories you’d get from caving to those cravings.

Remember, intermittent fasting works for some people, not all. And that’s okay. At its core, intermittent fasting is a way to reduce the number of calories you eat by restricting the times of day when you can eat, creating a weight loss framework that helps some people stick to a plan. 

This is something we can all learn from. Building attainable habits that you actually can stick to is key to any weight loss plan, no matter what time of day you plan on eating. 

CON-1702-001 07/23