Fasting for five days a month could cut your risk of heart disease, diabetes and cancer, a study claims.

Researchers at UCLA's Longevity Institute got groups of people to limit their calorie intake for one working week every month for three months.

The diet, designed to mimic the results of a water-only fast, allowed for participants to consume between 750 and 1,100 calories per day.

By the end of the trial, those who followed the 'fasting-mimicking diet' had lower blood pressure, more stable blood sugar, and better cholesterol levels than those who did not.

People who followed the 'fasting-mimicking diet' in a recent trial had lower blood pressure, more stable blood sugar, and better cholesterol levels than those who did not

WHAT IS 'THE FASTING-MIMICKING DIET'? In the UCLA trial, people on the 'fasting-mimicking diet' had food provided by the nutrition company L-Nutra. The diet stipulates that they limit calories to 750-1,100 for five days a month. During that time, they have a limited intake of carbohydrates and proteins, and a high amount of good fats. Their food packs would include energy bars, soups, a variety of snacks, drinks, and supplements. Their plant-based ingredients consist of fresh olives, vegetables, nuts, seeds, dark chocolate, and herbal teas. Advertisement

'This study provides evidence that people can experience significant health benefits through a periodic, fasting-mimicking diet that is designed to act on the aging process,' said Dr Valter Longo.

'Prior studies have indicated a range of health benefits in mice, but this is the first randomized clinical trial with enough participants to demonstrate that the diet is feasible, effective and safe for humans.'

Dr Longo, along with Dr Min Wei and colleagues, tested the effects of the fasting-mimicking diet on various risk factors for diabetes, heart disease, cancer or other conditions.

One hundred people participated in the trial from April 2013 to July 2015. The participants, aged between 20 and 70 years old and all generally healthy, were divided into two groups.

The first group, the control group, was told to continue their normal eating habits for three months.

People in the second group were placed on a three-month test of the fasting-mimicking diet, with food supplied by the nutrition company L-Nutra during the fasting periods.

The meals for the fast-mimicking diet contained precise proportions of proteins, fats and carbohydrates.

After three months, participants in the control group were moved onto the special diet.

The researchers found that participants on the fasting-mimicking diet lost an average of about 6lbs.

Their waistlines shrank by up to two inches.

Their systolic blood pressure, which was in the normal range when the study began, dropped by 4.5 mmHG, while their diastolic blood pressure dropped by 3.1 mmHg.

Meanwhile, they appeared to have a lower cancer risk, since most of them experienced a drop in their levels of IGF-1 (Insulin-like Growth Factor 1, a protein that fuels tumors).

Side effects were mild, including fatigue, weakness and headaches.

Drs Wei and Longo said that while 'the great majority' of participants had one or more risk factors for diseases such as diabetes, heart disease or cancer, 'FDA trials will be necessary to demonstrate whether periodic FMD is effective in disease prevention and treatment.'

Dr Joseph Antoun, CEO of L-Nutra, Inc., which produces FMD, told Reuters Health that FMD 'is intended for use by individuals who want to optimize their health and wellbeing, by overweight or obese individuals who want to manage their weight in an easy and healthy way, and by people who have abnormal levels of biomarkers for aging and age-related conditions.'

That said, Antoun acknowledged that if you have common conditions associated with overweight and obesity such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer, you should not use FMD without a doctor's approval.

The product also should not be used by children under 18 or pregnant or nursing women.

And it's not for you if you have certain metabolic diseases, liver or kidney disorders that may be affected by the very low glucose and protein content of the diet, or if you have nut or soy allergies.

What's more, it 'should never be combined with glucose-lowering drugs, such as metformin or insulin,' according to Antoun.

Registered dietitian Ashlea Braun of the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus pointed out that researchers compared the fasting-mimicking diet to participants' usual diet.

'Therefore, we don't yet know how this diet stands up against long-standing approaches already shown to be beneficial, such as the Mediterranean or DASH Diet.'

'It's not clear if (FMD) enables individuals to consistently meet all micronutrient requirements,' she told Reuters Health. 'It's also not known how this type of restrictive diet affects muscle mass in the long term, and what impact this has on various indicators of health.'

'Although there is some evidence showing these type of restrictive diets can help 'jump start' people considering lifestyle changes, more research is definitely needed before this is recommended for individuals,' Braun concluded.