Why staying on your GH medicine during a fast helps your body save muscle
Continuation of Growth Hormone (GH) Substitution during Fasting in GH-Deficient Patients Decreases Urea Excretion and Conserves Protein Synthesis<sup>1</sup>
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
When people with low growth hormone fast, their bodies break down muscle. But if they keep taking their GH medicine, their bodies use fat for energy instead and save their muscle.
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
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Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. Considered the gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
When people with low growth hormone fast, their bodies break down muscle. But if they keep taking their GH medicine, their bodies use fat for energy instead and save their muscle.
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
Max 100Randomized Controlled Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional Studies
Max 44Case Reports & Case Series
Max 30Expert Opinion & Narrative Reviews
Max 537 / 90
Evidence Score
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. Considered the gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Publication
Authors
Nørrelund H, Møller N, Nair KS, Christiansen JS, Jørgensen JO
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Claims (6)
When people with low growth hormone fast for a day and a half, giving them their hormone medicine helps their bodies keep building and keeping proteins instead of breaking them down.
When people with low growth hormone take their hormone while fasting, their bodies burn more fat for energy instead of breaking down muscle.
When people with low growth hormone fast and take their hormone, their bodies produce less urea (a waste product from breaking down protein), meaning they’re not losing as much protein.
When people with low growth hormone take their hormone while fasting, their blood sugar goes up a little, but their body doesn’t use more or less glucose overall—so it’s just keeping sugar available without changing how it’s burned.
Endogenous adipose tissue serves as a metabolic substrate that can support muscle protein synthesis during periods of caloric restriction or maintenance.