Clinical implications of nutritional interventions reducing calories, a systematic scoping review

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Caloric restriction (CR) constitutes a dietary approach of (temporarily) reducing calorie intake thereby inducing resilience and resistance mechanisms and promoting health. While CR's feasibility and safety have been proven in human trials, its full benefits and translation to different study populations warrants further exploration.

METHODS: We here conducted a systematic scoping review adhering to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines.

RESULTS: Our search resulted in 3745 individual records, of which 40 were included. We showed that all studies consistently demonstrated the feasibility and safety of CR-like interventions. The specific effects of nutritional preconditioning vary, further underscoring the need for carefully crafted strategies, according to the intended effect, patient population, and logistical limitations.

CONCLUSIONS: CR-like interventions (long-term CR or short-term fasting) are feasible in a broad range of patient populations. Whether it has clinical benefit, f.i. reducing treatment-induced side effects and enhancing therapy efficacy, has to be investigated further.