Simply changing when you eat—not how much—may significantly calm Crohn’s disease symptoms and inflammation.
A new randomized controlled trial funded by the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation reports that time-restricted feeding, a type of intermittent fasting, led to meaningful improvements in Crohn’s disease symptoms and inflammation among adults who also had overweight or obesity. Led by researchers at the University of Calgary, the study found that limiting daily eating to an 8-hour window reduced overall disease activity by 40% and cut abdominal discomfort by half within 12 weeks, compared with participants who followed their usual eating routine.
Weight Loss and Healthier Inflammation Markers
People assigned to intermittent fasting lost an average of about 5.5 pounds over the study period, while those in the comparison group gained roughly 3.7 pounds. Blood tests also showed improvements tied to inflammation and immune function, including lower levels of leptin and PAI-1, even though participants were not instructed to reduce calories or change what they ate.
The findings were published today (February 9) in Gastroenterology. Researchers emphasize that people with IBD should consult their healthcare team before making changes to eating patterns to determine whether intermittent fasting is a safe and appropriate option.
How Time-Restricted Feeding Was Studied
Time-restricted feeding (TRF) means eating all meals within a defined 8-hour period each day and fasting for the remaining 16 hours. The 12-week randomized trial followed 35 adults with Crohn’s disease who were living with obesity or overweight. Of those participants, 20 followed the TRF schedule, and 15 continued with their regular diet. Researchers evaluated disease activity, inflammation, and body composition at the beginning and end of the study.
“This study shows that while weight loss is an important outcome in people with overweight and Crohn’s disease, time-restricted feeding offers additional benefits beyond just the scale,” said Maitreyi Raman, MD, Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Calgary, the study’s senior author. “We saw meaningful improvements in disease symptoms, reduced abdominal discomfort, favorable shifts in metabolism and inflammation, and promising changes in gut bacteria—all suggesting that intermittent fasting may help patients maintain lasting remission from Crohn’s disease.”
Support From the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation
The research was backed by the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation’s Litwin IBD Pioneers program. “Time-restricted feeding is showing real promise as a new way to help people with Crohn’s disease manage not only their symptoms but also their overall health,” said Andres Lorenzo Hurtado, PhD, Senior Vice President of Translational Research & IBD Ventures at the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation. “This research suggests that changing when we eat—not just what we eat—can improve metabolism, help the immune system work better, and support long-term remission from Crohn’s disease. We are excited to support studies like this that put patients at the center of new solutions and encourage more research to make these benefits last for everyone living with IBD.”
“People with Crohn’s disease often look for practical tools to support their health alongside medication,” said Natasha Haskey, PhD, RD, Research Associate at the University of British Columbia and lead investigator in the study. “Our research suggests time-restricted eating may be a sustainable option grounded in biology, offering patients more ways to manage their own wellness.”
Why Meal Timing May Matter
Beyond symptom relief, the study found notable reductions in harmful visceral fat and key inflammatory signals in the blood among participants who practiced intermittent fasting. Because both groups consumed similar foods and comparable amounts of calories, the researchers concluded that these improvements were not driven by diet quality or calorie reduction alone. Instead, the timing of meals itself appears to play an important role in digestive and immune health.
While the results are encouraging, the researchers caution that larger studies are still needed to better understand the long-term safety and effectiveness of time-restricted feeding for broader groups of people living with IBD.
Reference: “Time-Restricted Feeding Reduces Body Mass Index, Visceral Adiposity, Systemic Inflammation, and Clinical Disease Activity in Adults With Crohn’s Disease: A Randomized Controlled Study” by Natasha Haskey, Jiayu Ye, Ayva Lewis, Munazza Yousuf, Raylene A. Reimer and Maitreyi Raman, 9 February 2026, Gastroenterology.
DOI: 10.1053/j.gastro.2025.11.008
This research was funded by Crohn’s Colitis Foundation, Litwin IBD Pioneers Grant (ID: 879104) and Imagine Network (University of Calgary).
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