Is it OK to Intermittent Fast with COVID-19 going around?

Answer from the desk of:
Dr. Anthony Balduzzi, Founder The FFP

This is a great question. I did some digging into the research, and there is unfortunately no DIRECT research on how intermittent fasting interacts with COVID. There is some research from Yale published in 2016 that shows how fasting affects the body during BACTERIAL vs VIRAL infections ( see here). 
Based on what I've seen, here's my take on the matter:
  • Daily intermittent fasting (skipping breakfast / compressing your eating window) is TOTALLY fine to continue as a daily habit.
  • If you're NOT feeling sick, performing 24-hour fasts several times per week is also totally fine.
If you are sick... I would NOT do 24-hour fasts. Having good nutrition while sick with a VIRUS actually HELPS the body clear viruses; the converse is true with BACTERIAL infections... which respond tend to be cleared up better in a fasted state (bacteria are alive and can thrive on glucose).
If you are sick, the foods you consume should be easy to digest: 
  • Fruits, veggies, protein powders, clean "perfect plate" FFP style meals.
  • Along with Vitamin D3 (2000-5000 IU), zinc (50mg), Vitamin C (1000mg daily), melatonin (1-5mg)
The punch-line: Continue fasting. If you feel sick with COVID style symptoms (fever, cough, sore throat, or stomach ache), it's fine to still skip breakfast, but do not do a 24-hour fast.
-Dr. A