by Morning fasts may be bad for fighting infection and may increase the risk of heart disease, research in mice shows. The researchers analyzed two groups of mice. One group had breakfast (the largest meal of the day) right after waking up, and the other skipped it. The researchers collected blood samples when the mice in both groups woke up (baseline), 4 hours later, and 8 hours later. When examining the blood, the researchers noticed a clear difference in the fasting group. Specifically, the researchers found differences in the number of monocytes. Monocytes are white blood cells produced in the bone marrow that travel through the body and play many key roles in fighting infections, heart disease and cancer, among other things. Monocytes in the fasted mice were significantly affected. The researchers emphasize that while there is also evidence that fasting is beneficial for metabolism, the new study is a useful advance in the overall understanding of the body’s mechanisms.
