Prevalence and demographic, substance use, and mental health correlates of fasting among U.S. college students

Fasting has recently garnered public attention given its purported benefits, including weight loss and improved physical functioning. To date, little research has been conducted to determine the prevalence of this behavior among college students, as well as what demographic characteristics, substance use behaviors, and mental health symptoms are associated with this behavior. Results from a sample of over 8000 college students from four survey years of the Healthy Minds Study show that fasting is common among college men and women and has increased in prevalence from 2016 to 2020. Fasting is associated with indicators of poor mental health including depression, anxiety, eating disorder symptoms, suicidal ideation, and non-suicidal self-injury (e.g., cutting, burning), among both college men and women. Fasting is associated with substance use behaviors, including marijuana use and other illicit drug use (e.g., cocaine, ecstasy), among college women. These results highlight the adverse correlates of this common weight loss and compensatory behavior among college students.