Time-restricted eating may decrease risk of cardiovascular disease in older breast cancer survivors: Study

Older breast cancer survivors with cardiometabolic risk factors who restricted food consumption to eight hours during the workday, followed by 16 hours of fasting, had a lower risk of CVD after a few weeks, according to a new study published in The American College of Cardiology.

The study’s findings were published in the journal ‘JACC Cardio Oncology.’ The research will be published in the upcoming “Physical Activity and Lifestyle Interventions in Cancer” mini-focus issue.

The researchers looked at 22 people who were overweight or obese (BMI > 25kg/m2), had finished cardiotoxic treatment (anthracyclines, a popular chemotherapy drug) within the previous one to six years, and were on average 66 years old.

Participants were allowed to eat whenever they wanted between 12 and 8 p.m. on weekdays and at any time on weekends for eight weeks. Participants were only allowed to drink water, black coffee, or black tea outside of those hours.

The authors calculated the 10-year Framingham Risk Score using the Canadian Cardiovascular Society scoring system and discovered that CVD risk fell from 10.9 percent to 8.6 percent at the end of the trial period.

“This well-designed single-arm feasibility research raises interesting hypotheses and issues concerning the significance of time-restricted feeding in cancer survivors,” stated Bonnie Ky, MD, MSCE, editor-in-chief of JACC: Cardio Oncology.

For instance, what is the foundation for inter-individual heterogeneity in the Framingham Risk Score response to time-restricted eating, and will this help identify patients who are most likely to benefit from this strategy?”

“What effect does the quality of one’s food have on these results?” We hope to see research based on practical lifestyle modifications continue to advance and improve the lives of our patients and survivors. “