Fasting, not calorie count, boosts lifespan in mice: study

It is interesting that the mice which fasted had improved metabolism and blood sugar regulation while the mice which ate the same amount of calories throughout the day did not.

Obviously, it is not possible to extrapolate to humans from this study alone. However, the fact that fasting (and severe calorie restriction) can heal type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome suggests that there may be similar processes at work in humans and mice.