Introduction Studies link hypovitaminosis D to be significantly associated with poor glycemic control, heightened inflammation, and risk of complications. Studies recommend fasting or calorie restriction as a useful measure to achieve diabetic reversal. The present study explores if therapeutic fasting is associated with improvement in the vitamin D levels and other clinical outcomes related to type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Methods This observational study included 26 T2DM patients exposed to a 10-day medically supervised fasting (≈ 500–1000 Kcal/day) in a complementary medicine facility. Levels of vitamin D, B12, fasting blood sugar (FBS), blood pressure, anthropometric measures, World Health Organization Quality of Life, disease perception (Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire), and self-reported vitality were measured at the baseline and the 10th day.

Results Significant improvement in the levels of vitamin D (p = 0.000), B12 (p = 0.03), and reduction in FBS levels (p = 0.001), blood pressure, body mass index, waist and hip circumference (p ≤ 0.05), and improvement in quality of life, vitality, and disease perception (p < 0.001) were observed by the end of 10th day. FBS shared a negative correlation with vitamin D levels (males r = –0.1, females r = –0.48).

Conclusion The present findings provide insights into the probable mechanisms by which therapeutic fasting modulates the progression of T2DM. Nevertheless, large-scale randomized controlled trials are warranted to validate the present findings.

The study was approved by the institutional ethics committee of Sant Hirdaram Medical College for Naturopathy & Yogic Sciences (F.No:12/SHMCNYS/IEC/P35), Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India.

All the participants signed a written consent to express their consent to participate in the study.

The data will be made available on request to the corresponding author.

Article published online:
22 January 2024

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