Scientific documentation of Buchinger Wilhelmi therapeutic fasting
Buchinger Wilhelmi actively contributes towards international research on fasting and “real-food” nutrition: The research department led by Dr. Françoise Wilhelmi de Toledo and coordinated by scientific project manager Franziska Grundler is currently working on several major studies.
Periodic fasting according to the Buchinger Wilhelmi programme reduces fat accumulation in the liver (fatty liver) and can thus prevent liver cirrhosis
The pathological accumulation of fat in the liver and is a major cause of a worldwide increase in chronic liver disease and can lead to cirrhosis. Periodic fasting over 8.5 days on average lowers the fatty liver index (FLI), a risk parameter for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. A fatty liver significantly promotes the development of type 2 diabetes and is exacerbated by overeating and lack of exercise.
A study entitled “Effects of Periodic Fasting on Fatty Liver Index – A Prospective Observational Study” published in the journal Nutrients in October surveyed 697 people who fasted at the Clinic Buchinger Wilhelmi on Lake Constance. Among the participants were 38 subjects with type 2 diabetes. At the beginning of the study, a fatty liver was diagnosed in 264 cases: the FLI was ≥ 60, indicating the presence of a fatty liver; 160 were at the permitted limit.
The study demonstrated the following:
- Periodic fasting in this study significantly reduced the FLI by 14.02 ± 11.67 points, with diabetic subjects benefiting even more (-19.15 ± 11.0 points).
- Almost half of the patients assigned to the highest risk category (FLI ≥ 60) were able to switch to a lower-risk category.
- Significant weight loss of 4.37 ± 2.42 kg and an abdominal circumference reduction of 5.39 ± 3.27 cm were also documented in all patients. Subjects exhibited lower blood glucose and HbA1c levels, and their liver enzymes and blood lipids also decreased.
- Fasting over a longer period, higher weight loss and a greater reduction in abdominal circumference improved the FLI considerably. In addition, male patients who initially had higher FLI, GOT (an important liver enzyme) and cholesterol levels benefited particularly from fasting.
- A calculation model showed that each additional day fasting increases the chance of transforming a manifest fatty liver into a lower risk category by 40 %.
Periodic fasting according to the Buchinger Wilhelmi programme took place in an environment that provided medical care, rest and mindfulness, and was well tolerated in the study. It consists of a daily average intake of 250 kcal of organic fruit juices and broths. The participants rarely felt hungry, and the results clearly show that periodic fasting reduces a fatty liver in diabetic and non-diabetic patients.
World’s largest scientific human study on the effects of Buchinger fasting published
The largest scientific study on the effects of Buchinger therapeutic fasting carried out to date has now been published. It was conducted at Buchinger Wilhelmi, a well-established fasting clinic, by a team led by Dr. Françoise Wilhelmi de Toledo in cooperation with Prof. Andreas Michalsen from Charité University Hospital in Berlin and with the support of many of our guests and patients. The study collected and evaluated data from 1,422 subjects (41 % male, 59 % female), who completed the Buchinger Wilhelmi fasting programme over a period of 5, 10, 15 or 20 days in 2016. Under the title “Safety, health improvement and well-being during a 4 to 21-day fasting period in an observational study including 1422 subjects”, the study shows that Buchinger therapeutic fasting is safe and therapeutically effective. It also promotes emotional and physical well-being. The results of the study were published online on January 2, 2019 in the peer-reviewed journal PLOS ONE.
The study provided detailed evidence that:
- Fasting mobilizes the energy stored in the fatty tissue of the human body. The metabolism switches from glucose to fat and ketone consumption, causing many beneficial effects. The metabolic change was documented in the study by the permanent presence of ketone bodies in the urine.
- Fasting leads to significant weight loss, a reduced abdominal circumference, and lower cholesterol and blood lipid levels.
- Fasting also normalized blood pressure and improved diabetes parameters such as blood sugar and HbA1c, thus improving many factors that contribute to a healthy cardiovascular system.
- Furthermore, in 84 % of cases, serious health conditions such as arthritis, type 2 diabetes as well as fatty liver and hypercholesterolemia, high blood pressure and fatigue improved through fasting.
- 93 % of the subjects did not feel hungry during fasting, which contributed to their emotional and physical well-being.
- Medically supervised fasting had only very few side-effects, which could be treated easily and without interruptions to fasting. In individual cases, subjects experienced restless sleep, headaches, tiredness or lumbar spine complaints during the first three days.
In summary, this particular fasting programme has been shown to be a safe and well-tolerated approach to prevent age-related illnesses and treat chronic metabolic disorders, including weight issues. The Buchinger Wilhelmi fasting programme evolved from the traditional Buchinger fasting cure. It involves a daily intake of organic fruit juice and soup averaging 200-250 calories, accompanied by physical activity in an environment that promotes calmness and mindfulness. It combines fasting with integrative medicine and a variety of incentives for personal development and empowerment.
Françoise Wilhelmi de Toledo, Franziska Grundler, Audrey Bergouignan, Stefan Drinda, Andreas Michalsen: “Safety, health improvement and well-being during a 4 to 21-day fasting period in an observational study including 1422 subjects.” PLOS ONE, January 2, 2019
Fasting and muscle function
Another study carried out by Dr. Françoise Wilhelmi de Toledo and Dr. Franziska Grundler of Buchinger Wilhelmi with their research team, together with Dr. Yvon Le Maho and Dr. Stéphane Blanc and their team from the CNRS (National Centre for Scientific Research) in Strasbourg, documents the effect of the Buchinger Wilhelmi fasting programme on muscular performance and muscle metabolism in 16 healthy, non-obese men. As well as fasting for 10 days following the Buchinger Wilhelmi method, the subjects underwent a three-hour moderate exercise programme every day.
The study showed that the muscles are less involved than was long feared, and that muscles regenerate after fasting in the same way as other organ tissues. No decrease in muscle performance was observed; on the contrary, the performance of the muscles in the lower extremities improved significantly after fasting, while that of the remaining muscles was not affected.
Protein breakdown, documented by the negative nitrogen balance, decreased from day to day due to the activation of protein sparing mechanisms. Similarly, 3-methylhistidine, a marker of muscle breakdown, decreased after day 5 of fasting. Other proteolysis markers such as GOT and creatinine confirm this observation. When food was reintroduced after fasting, myostatin decreased significantly, promoting the regeneration of muscle mass.
You can find the results here.
Thank you to all participants
We would like to express our heartfelt thanks to our guests and patients for supporting our scientific research. You make the effort to observe yourselves every day, fill out forms and send them back to us. Should you return to the clinic, we will be able to show you some impressive preliminary results with improvements in almost all parameters and thank you personally for working with us.
Thank you to all participants
We would like to express our heartfelt thanks to our guests and patients for supporting our scientific research. You make the effort to observe yourselves every day, fill out forms and send them back to us. Should you return to the clinic, we will be able to show you some impressive preliminary results with improvements in almost all parameters and thank you personally for working with us.
Medical Association for Fasting and Nutrition (ÄGHE)
The Medical Association for Fasting and Nutrition (ÄGHE) is a non-profit organization with around 200 members. It was founded in 1986 in Überlingen by doctors at Buchinger Wilhelmi clinic under Dr. Heinz Fahrner and at Kurpark clinic under Dr. Hellmut Lützner.
Objectives and duties of the ÄGHE:
- Promoting fasting under medical supervision and healthy nutritional strategies as well as their scientific documentation
- Organising training courses and scientific congresses
- Presenting academic teaching and elaborating course contents
- Publishing scientific and verified information on the topics of fasting and nutrition
Congresses held by the ÄGHE
One of the objectives and tasks of the ÄGHE is to scientifically document therapeutic fasting. To this end, the society organises training conventions as well as an international scientific congress every two years:
Congress held by the ÄGHE
One of the objectives and tasks of the ÄGHE is to scientifically document therapeutic fasting. To this end, the society organises training conventions as well as an international scientific congress every two years:

Transformation through Fasting:
June 18, 2022
Bibliography
The following list provides an overview of publications from our clinics. Further interesting videos can be found on our YouTube Channel.
„You cannot give more than yourself, but you should not give less.“
Maria Buchinger Wilhelmi
„You cannot give more than yourself, but you should not give less.“
Maria Buchinger Wilhelmi
The Maria Buchinger Foundation
Maria Buchinger and her husband Helmut Wilhelmi together with Maria’s father Dr. Otto Buchinger founded the first fasting clinic in Überlingen on Lake Constance (Germany) in 1953. A second Spanish fasting clinic was opened 20 years later in Marbella, Andalusia.
These two facilities have produced three generations of doctors, staff and family members, who have developed fasting as a therapy, prevention and spiritual exercise. The work of the clinics’ founders is known worldwide and is being continued with the support of the Maria Buchinger Foundation. It was established one year after Maria’s death by the Wilhelmi, Rohrer and de Toledo families – in honour of their mother, mother-in-law and grandmother.
Goals of the Maria Buchinger Foundation
The goal of the foundation is to promote research in fasting as a therapeutic and preventive procedure:
- awarding and funding research assignments
- financing research programmes, educational and informational events
- all measures that are suited to upholding and enhancing the life work of Maria Buchinger and her husband Helmut Wilhelmi, Drs. Otto Buchinger Sr. and Jr., as well as their descendants.
The Maria Buchinger Foundation
Maria Buchinger and her husband Helmut Wilhelmi together with Maria’s father Dr. Otto Buchinger founded the first fasting clinic in Überlingen on Lake Constance (Germany) in 1953. A second Spanish fasting clinic was opened 20 years later in Marbella, Andalusia.
These two facilities have produced three generations of doctors, staff and family members, who have developed fasting as a therapy, prevention and spiritual exercise. The work of the clinics’ founders is known worldwide and is being continued with the support of the Maria Buchinger Foundation. It was established one year after Maria’s death by the Wilhelmi, Rohrer and de Toledo families – in honour of their mother, mother-in-law and grandmother.
Goal of the Maria Buchinger Foundation
The goal of the foundation is to promote research in fasting as a therapeutic and preventive procedure:
- awarding and funding research assignments
- financing research programmes, educational and informational events
- all measures that are suited to upholding and enhancing the life work of Maria Buchinger and her husband Helmut Wilhelmi, Drs. Otto Buchinger Sr. and Jr., as well as their descendants
Maria Buchinger Foundation Award
The award is granted every two years by the Maria Buchinger Foundation to researchers for scientific documentation on the topic of fasting.
Award winners:
2011 Prof. Christine Uhlemann, Jena
2013 Prof. Valter Longo, University of South California, Los Angeles
2015 Dr. Heinz Fahrner und Dr. Hellmut Lützner, Überlingen
2017 Dr. Yvon Le Maho, CNRS, Strasbourg
2019 Dr. Mark Mattson, John Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore
Board of Directors:
Dr. med. Françoise Wilhelmi de Toledo 1. Vorsitzende
Claus Rohrer, 2. Vorsitzender
Katharina Rohrer-Zaiser, Stiftungsrat
Leonard Wilhelmi, Stiftungsrat
Contact:
Maria Buchinger Foundation Award
The award is granted every two years by the Maria Buchinger Foundation to researchers for scientific documentation on the topic of fasting.
Award winners:
2011 Prof. Christine Uhlemann, Jena
2013 Prof. Valter Longo, University of South California, Los Angeles
2015 Dr. Heinz Fahrner und Dr. Hellmut Lützner, Überlingen
2017 Dr. Yvon Le Maho, CNRS, Strasbourg
Board of Directors:
Dr. med. Françoise Wilhelmi de Toledo 1. Vorsitzende
Claus Rohrer, 2. Vorsitzender
Katharina Rohrer-Zaiser, Stiftungsrat
Leonard Wilhelmi, Stiftungsrat
Contact: