Buchinger Wilhelmi vs YEARS: Fasting or Diagnostics?

Buchinger Wilhelmi vs. YEARS: Therapeutic Fasting or Precision Diagnostics?

Anyone proactively investing in their health is likely to come across two names early on: Buchinger Wilhelmi, which has practiced therapeutic fasting for more than 100 years, and YEARS, a Berlin-based longevity clinic focused on precise diagnostics. Both appeal to a similar clientele, but they follow fundamentally different strategies.

Buchinger Wilhelmi treats the body through a radical, medically supervised intervention. YEARS examines it first. These two approaches are not necessarily mutually exclusive, but they answer different questions: one starts with known complaints, while the other looks for risks before they cause symptoms.

This article compares the methodology, costs, time commitment and scientific basis of both offerings, so you can assess which approach may be more appropriate for your situation.

1. The Two Philosophies: Therapeutic Fasting vs. Data-Driven Diagnostics

1.1 Buchinger Wilhelmi: Healing Through Abstinence

Dr. Otto Buchinger developed his fasting method in 1920 in Bad Pyrmont after experiencing a significant improvement in his own severe joint disease following a fasting treatment. Since then, the concept has been based on the assumption that targeted food restriction triggers various metabolic and cellular adaptation processes.

The model:

• Principle: A liquid-based fasting protocol providing around 200 to 250 kcal per day, exclusively through vegetable broths and fruit juices.
• Duration: Typically several days to several weeks as an inpatient.
• Focus: Metabolic adaptations, weight reduction, and changes in inflammatory and metabolic parameters.
• Goal: Medically supervised therapeutic fasting used, among other things, in people with hypertension, overweight, metabolic syndrome and certain rheumatological complaints, accompanied by a psychological reset.

The scientific basis is documented. A prospective observational study involving 1,422 participants found that medically supervised Buchinger fasting over 4 to 21 days was generally well tolerated and associated with improvements in factors including body weight, waist circumference, blood pressure, glucose metabolism and subjective well-being. However, because the study did not include a randomized control group, it cannot establish therapeutic efficacy for individual diseases (Wilhelmi de Toledo et al., PLOS ONE 2019).

1.2 YEARS: Prevention Through Comprehensive Data Analysis

YEARS does not initially intervene therapeutically, but first documents a detailed picture of the current health status. The principle: identify risks before they produce symptoms.

The model:

• Principle: Clinical, functional and molecular diagnostics completed within a single day.
• Diagnostic depth: Depending on the program, 87 to more than 230 biomarkers are analyzed. The entry-level program includes systematic ultrasound examinations, while Evolve® adds whole-body MRI, alongside genetic analyses and functional testing such as VO₂max measurement.
• Focus: Creation of a high-resolution medical baseline. Identification of potential risk factors for cardiovascular disease, cancer, and neurodegenerative and metabolic disorders.
• Goal: No symptom treatment, but an individualized, data-driven plan aimed at extending healthy lifespan.

Following the examination, a physician-led strategy consultation is conducted to develop a prioritized plan for the next 12 to 24 months.

2. The Clinical Comparison: What Is Measured? What Is Achieved?

2.1 Buchinger Wilhelmi: Focus on Tangible Outcomes

During a fasting program, standard medical parameters are monitored, including blood pressure, weight, waist circumference, cholesterol levels (total, HDL, LDL), blood glucose and CRP.

Documented effects include changes in blood pressure, body weight, blood lipids and parameters of glucose metabolism during or after medically supervised fasting. Participants lose several kilograms on average and frequently report improvements in subjective well-being.

What the concept does not provide is a systematic search for risk factors that are not captured by standard blood testing. This is not criticism, but simply a distinction between the scope of the two approaches.

2.2 YEARS: Focus on Undetected Risks

YEARS uses a breadth of diagnostics that goes beyond many conventional preventive examinations.

Comprehensive biomarkers: The YEARS Core® program includes 87 biomarkers, including:

• ApoB: A marker of the number of atherogenic lipoprotein particles and, particularly when discordant with LDL cholesterol, an important marker for cardiovascular risk assessment.
• hs-CRP: A highly sensitive, nonspecific inflammatory marker that can be used, among other applications, in cardiovascular risk assessment.
• HOMA Index: A marker used to estimate insulin resistance based on fasting glucose and fasting insulin.
• NT-proBNP: A marker reflecting cardiac wall stress.

Extended diagnostics from Evolve® onward: The YEARS Evolve® program adds:

• Whole-body MRI, which can visualize structural abnormalities, organ changes and certain tumors without ionizing radiation. As with any broad imaging approach, incidental findings and false-positive findings can occur.
• Liquid biopsy for the detection of molecular or cellular indications associated with more than 70 solid tumor types. The procedure remains research-oriented, does not replace established cancer screening and requires further diagnostic work-up if abnormalities are detected.

The YEARS Ultimate® program includes additional molecular assessments, including epigenetic analyses designed to assess different aspects of biological aging.

Functional tests: YEARS systematically measures maximal or peak oxygen uptake. The cardiorespiratory fitness captured through this type of testing is among the strongest known predictors of all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. Muscle strength, balance and cognitive abilities are also assessed.

3. Differences Between the Models: Inpatient Retreat vs. Outpatient Diagnostic Day

3.1 Buchinger Wilhelmi: The Immersive Retreat

Buchinger Wilhelmi operates as a retreat. Guests withdraw from everyday life for one to three weeks at clinic-resorts on Lake Constance or in Marbella, overlooking either the lake or the Mediterranean and surrounded by other guests at different stages of the fasting process.

• Time commitment: At least several days, often 10, 14 or 21 days.
• Setting: Inpatient, with a comprehensive program combining exercise, relaxation and medical supervision.
• Compatibility with everyday life: Low. The model requires a deliberate and extended absence from work.
• Costs: Depending on the duration of the stay and room category, several thousand euros to more than €20,000.

3.2 YEARS: Efficient Integration

YEARS is designed to fit into a busy schedule.

• Time commitment: One day. The Core® program takes around 6 hours, while Evolve® and Ultimate® take approximately 9 hours.
• Setting: Clinical environment in Berlin-Charlottenburg. Afterwards, you can go home or straight to your next meeting.
• Compatibility with everyday life: High.
• Costs: YEARS Core® costs €1,900, YEARS Evolve® €7,600 and YEARS Ultimate® €16,900. Services are billed according to the German GOÄ medical fee schedule. Depending on the individual tariff, partial or full reimbursement may be possible through private health insurance, state aid schemes or employer-sponsored health insurance.

4. Science and Research: Established Evidence vs. “Clinic-as-a-Study”

Buchinger Wilhelmi draws on more than 100 years of clinical experience and a growing body of published research on the safety and effects of therapeutic fasting. This includes prospective observational studies and other clinical investigations. Much of the available evidence focuses on short- to medium-term changes in risk factors and metabolic parameters; data on long-term clinical endpoints remain considerably more limited.

YEARS has chosen a different model. Each client contributes anonymized data to a prospective longitudinal study on healthy aging. From the Evolve® program onward, samples are cryopreserved and may be used for future scientific analyses. The scientific work is medically and scientifically supervised and forms part of the clinic’s long-term research concept.

5. Cost-Benefit: What Is the Return on Investment?

Buchinger Wilhelmi can provide a short- to medium-term tangible return: weight loss, changes in blood values and a genuine sense of reset. The question is sustainability. Anyone returning to previous habits after fasting risks losing part of the improvements achieved.

At YEARS, the investment goes into information and strategy. The immediate benefit is not an improved physical feeling, but a detailed picture of the individual risk profile. A markedly elevated ApoB level or an abnormal MRI finding may be identified earlier and subsequently assessed medically, compared with waiting until an examination is triggered by symptoms. Follow-up assessments can then show how relevant risk factors change over time.

6. Who Is Each Model Suitable For?

When Buchinger Wilhelmi May Be the Better Fit:

• You have specific complaints: hypertension, overweight, rheumatic conditions or metabolic syndrome.
• You are looking for a genuine break: a radical reset rather than a single day off.
• You have time: at least one week, preferably two.
• The experience matters to you: a luxurious, holistic retreat environment is part of what you are looking for.

When YEARS May Be the Better Fit:

• You feel healthy: your goal is prevention rather than therapy.
• Your calendar is tight: you need a solution that can be scheduled like a business appointment. This is particularly relevant for an executive health check-up in Berlin.
• You make data-driven decisions: you want to know how ApoB, VO₂max or your inflammatory markers develop over the years.
• Control matters to you: you want a documented plan rather than general advice.

7. The Critical Perspective: Limitations of Both Approaches

Criticism of therapeutic fasting: Positive short-term effects on various metabolic parameters are documented, but long-term sustainability remains an important question. A 2021 Cochrane review concluded that intermittent fasting does not show a clear advantage over conventional continuous calorie restriction for weight loss. However, the certainty of the evidence was largely low to very low, and the study periods were limited.

A 2024 observational analysis presented at an American Heart Association conference also found a statistical association between a daily eating window of less than eight hours and higher cardiovascular mortality. However, the results were preliminary, based on observational data and do not establish that time-restricted eating caused the increased risk. The analysis therefore does not provide sufficient evidence for a general warning against short eating windows.

Criticism of diagnostics alone: Knowing 230 biomarkers is worthless if no action follows. YEARS addresses this through the mandatory strategy consultation and coaching options available in the higher-tier programs. Implementation still ultimately depends on the client. In addition, the scientific basis of individual diagnostic procedures does not automatically mean that the clinical benefit of a highly comprehensive screening strategy as an entire package has already been demonstrated through long-term outcome studies.

Conclusion: The Right Sequence Instead of False Competition

Buchinger Wilhelmi and YEARS compete less directly than it may initially appear. They answer different questions at different points in time.

A reasonable combination could look like this:

1. Baseline with YEARS: Start with a YEARS Evolve® program to establish a precise baseline.
2. Intervention at Buchinger: Based on medical assessment, determine whether a fasting program may be appropriate in the presence of metabolic risk factors or certain complaints.
3. Monitoring with YEARS: One year later, assess whether relevant risk markers have changed sustainably and repeat selected biological aging markers.

Knowing what is happening in your body can help you use interventions such as therapeutic fasting more selectively and measure their effects.

Are you ready to build your personal longevity strategy on a solid data foundation? Schedule a free consultation to identify the YEARS program that best fits your needs.

Sources

1. Wilhelmi de Toledo, F., Grundler, F., Bergouignan, A., Drinda, S., & Michalsen, A. (2019). Safety, health improvement and well-being during a 4 to 21-day fasting period in an observational study including 1422 subjects. PLOS ONE, 14(1), e0209353. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0209353
2. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. (2021). Intermittent fasting for the prevention of cardiovascular disease.
3. Zhong, V. W., et al. (2024). Abstract P192: 8-Hour Time-Restricted Eating Linked to a 91% Higher Risk of Cardiovascular Death. Presented at: American Heart Association Epidemiology and Prevention | Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health Scientific Sessions 2024, Chicago.