ReviewNutrition & metabolism2021
Gut microbiota modulation as a possible mediating mechanism for fasting-induced alleviation of metabolic complications: a systematic review.
Review in Nutrition & metabolism, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 36 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
36 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 56 citations in OpenAlex.
- The Clinical Impact of Time-restricted Eating on Cancer: A Systematic Review.Nutrition reviews · 2025Pooled it
- Circadian synchronization between diet and gut microbiota in modulating host's health.Gut microbes · 2026Review
- Ramadan fasting induces temporal gut microbiome remodeling without metabolic improvement in adults with prediabetes.Microbiology spectrum · 2026Article
- Stage-Specific Dynamic of Gut Microbiota Across the Musk-Secretion Cycle in Forest Musk Deer (Microorganisms · 2026Article
- Dietary Yam (Nutrients · 2026Article
- Food as Friend or Foe: A Decadal Narrative Review of Dietary Patterns as Determinants of Gastrointestinal Pathophysiology and Clinical Outcomes (2015-2025).International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- A novel protein B2URF3 from Akkermansia muciniphila increased by intermittent fasting alleviates vascular calcification.Journal of nanobiotechnology · 2026Article
- Metabolic switching in MASLD: therapeutic roles of ketogenic diet, intermittent fasting, and the gut-liver axis.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Review
- The impact of short-term intensive fasting on physical health and gut microbiota in obese individuals.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Article
- Associations among physical activity, diet, non-lifestyle characteristics and the gut microbiome of cancer patients: A scoping review and network analysis.Oncoscience · 2026Review
- Nutritional timing and stress biology: intermittent fasting as a hormetic signal for adaptation.Frontiers in nutrition · 2026Review
- Small intestine is not colon: a newGut microbes · 2025Article
- Time-Restricted Eating, ANGPTL4, and Reduction in Residual Cardiovascular Risk.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Intermittent Fasting and Hormonal Regulation: Pathways to Improved Metabolic Health.Food science & nutrition · 2025Review
- Intermittent Fasting as a Neuroprotective Strategy: Gut-Brain Axis Modulation and Metabolic Reprogramming in Neurodegenerative Disorders.Nutrients · 2025Review
- Fasting builds a favorable environment for effective gut microbiota modulation by microbiota-accessible carbohydrates.BMC microbiology · 2025Article
- The impact of fasting and caloric restriction on rheumatoid arthritis in humans: A narrative review.Clinical nutrition (Edinburgh, Scotland) · 2025Review
- Microbiota-Accessible Borates as Novel and Emerging Prebiotics for Healthy Longevity: Current Research Trends and Perspectives.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Surviving on Limited Resources: Effects of Caloric Restriction on Growth, Gene Expression and Gut Microbiota in a Species With Male Pregnancy (Hippocampus erectus).Molecular ecology · 2025Article
- Microbiome, Potential Therapeutic Agents: New Players of Obesity Treatment.Journal of microbiology and biotechnology · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundIntermittent fasting has been reported to have positive effects on obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, and several neurodegenerative diseases through different mechanisms such as alteration in the gut microbiota. This systematic review was conducted with the aim of providing an overview of the existing animal and human literature regarding the gut microbiota alterations in various fasting regimens.
methodA systematic literature search was conducted on PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science databases up to May 2021 to find all relevant studies examining the gut microbiota alteration during the fasting. Original researches on animal models or human patients were included in this study.
resultsThe search fulfilled 3072 documents from which 31 studies (20 animal and 11 human studies) were included. Upon fasting, abundance of several beneficial bacteria including Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium shifted significantly. Moreover, some taxa, including Odoribacter which negatively associated with blood pressure bloomed during fasting. Ramadan fasting, as a kind of intermittent fasting, improves health parameters through positive changes in gut microbiota including upregulation of A. muciniphila, B. fragilis, Bacteroides and butyric acid-producing Lachnospiraceae.
conclusionThe findings suggest that different fasting regimens including alternate-day fasting, calorie- and time-restricted fasting programs and Ramadan fasting could promote health maybe through the modulation of gut microbiome. However, further studies are needed to explore properly the connection between gut microbiota and meal frequency and timing.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.