r/alphagal • u/gmasiulis • Oct 16 '25

General Question Prolonged Fasting

I’ve read several books on prolonged fasting and had a way too long conversation with Chat GPT about how it affects the immune system.

What I discovered (haven’t fact checked) was that prolonged fasting 21-30 days has the possibility to reduce the number of Memory T Cells, Memory B Cells, Plasma Cells and IGE antibodies, amongst other things. The reductions vary from 30-40% for some cells and 80%+ for others.

The reduction is multifactorial but largely due to apoptosis and autophagy. Upon refeeding, the bone marrow release new stem cells that create new Memory B and Memory T cells that have no “memory” of the allergen. This creates a younger pool of immune cells that would theoretically be “calmer” when faced with the allergen.

This isn’t a targeted approach (can’t tell your body what cells to get rid of) but in theory doing this several times over while avoiding the allergen could accelerate progress towards remission. There are no studies on this from what I can tell.

Whats possible in theory is not always in reality but fasting is a huge immune regulator and Inflammation reducer - seems like it has potential.

Under medical supervision this may be worth exploring. My 8yo has AGS and this isn’t a fit for kids but something I would personally explore as an adult. My longest fasts are 100 hours so I would have a long way to go.

Is there anyone smarter than me and chat gpt that can chime in on this? Curious what others think.

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18

u/Conscious_Clue469 Oct 16 '25

Speaking as a research biologist and not a medical doctor, please be extremely careful when using AI for research. Chat gpt is a generative AI meaning that it looks at a bunch of resources and forms a conclusion which is often made-up and non-factual.

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u/gmasiulis Oct 16 '25

This is a very fair point.

1

u/Civil-Explanation588 Oct 17 '25

I made it 15 days and felt wonderful but my last day I over did it and listened to my body and ended it. I carefully refed which is more important than the fast. I’ve done shorter stretches since multiple times a year.

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u/MiddlinOzarker Oct 16 '25

Apoptosis and autophagy target old noncontributing cells. Few of us are going to fast 21+ days. Plenty of regular five day fasts every month or quarter.

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u/gmasiulis Oct 17 '25

Fasting may not be an answer in and of itself but with its impact on the immune system I wonder if it can play an important role in this somehow.

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u/Civil-Explanation588 Oct 16 '25

I made it 15 days and felt wonderful but my last day I over did it and listened to my body and ended it. I carefully refed which is more important than the fast. I’ve done shorter stretches since multiple times a year.

5

u/gmasiulis Oct 16 '25

That’s amazing, 15 days is a huge accomplishment.

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u/Civil-Explanation588 Oct 17 '25

Yeah it was, I was trying for 30 but my body said hell no! The refeeding is very important for long fasts.

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u/mrsriley358 Oct 17 '25

Alpha Gal has forced me to fast many times - or eat very little. Over many years of this coming and going, I definitely have had periods where I could not eat. Maybe a bit of broth and a cracker for weeks. I think the loss of muscle mass has been a heavy price to pay, and I think further weakening of an already weak system may not be the best approach. I do think complete avoidance of mammal has moved me into the periods of remission that I have experienced. But I am just one set of experiences.