An adult with atopic dermatitis and repeated short-term fasting

Abstract

It has been reported that nutritional stress, such as short-term fasting and long-term energy restriction, has a suppressive effect on allergic dermatitis in experimental animals. Furthermore, clinical study has demonstrated a positive association between weight loss by low-energy diet and improvement in patients with atopic dermatitis. In this report, a 23-year-old female with atopic dermatitis received a treatment of repeated short-term fasting. 24-hour fasting was conducted once a week for a period of 20 weeks. On the fasting day, the amount of energy intake was 200 kcal. No medication was administered during the trial period. Clinical symptoms were evaluated using the Scoring Atopic Dermatitis index, and IgE, lactase dehydrogenase-5, and number of eosinophils were measured. At the end of the trial, body weight was reduced and clinical symptoms improved, whereas no improvements in laboratory findings were shown. For sufficient evidence of the effects of fasting, additional controlled study is needed.