Therapeutic Fasting in Germany – Tradition and Medical Supervision

The essentials at a glance

• Therapeutic fasting in Germany dates back to the physician Otto Buchinger (1878–1971), who transformed fasting from a folk remedy into a medically guided method.
• Buchinger therapeutic fasting is the conscious, time-limited abstinence from solid food and stimulants—it is not a zero-calorie diet, nor is it primarily a weight-loss method.
• The professional foundation today is provided by the Medical Association for Fasting and Nutrition (ÄGHE), which issues the guidelines for fasting therapy; further studies can be viewed there.
• Medically supervised therapeutic fasting combines medical history, physical examination, and a supportive therapeutic program with a calm, individually tailored routine.
• The Naturhotel Tannerhof in Bayrischzell has carried on this tradition for over 70 years and three generations of doctors—fasting is in the hotel's DNA.

Therapeutic fasting as a German health tradition

Anyone looking for therapeutic fasting in Germany today is part of a long lineage. Therapeutic fasting in this country is not a fleeting trend, but a health tradition that has grown over a century, combining medicine with inner reflection. It originated in the medical work of a man who first experienced fasting on his own body and then shaped it into a guided method: Otto Buchinger.

Buchinger therapeutic fasting is the conscious, time-limited abstinence from solid food and stimulants. It is not a zero-calorie diet and not primarily a weight-loss method, but rather more than a diet—it is a therapeutic method, a cleansing on many levels, and an encounter with oneself. This definition remains valid today and is the common denominator of a tradition that has been maintained in Germany for generations. Those who wish to read about the method in detail can find it on the Tannerhof page regarding the Buchinger Method, embedded in the Therapeutic Fasting and Slim Tanne hub.

At the Naturhotel Tannerhof, this tradition is particularly tangible. Therapeutic fasting was introduced to the hotel by Johannes von Mengershausen from the second generation of the family and has been continued for three generations of doctors, spanning over 70 years in total. His handed-down quote still shapes our philosophy today: Through therapeutic fasting, you discover a new freedom: independence from solid food. Fasting means silence, listening to your inner processes, and reflecting on what is essential. And alongside it stands, concise and valid, Otto Buchinger's own phrase: Fasting stimulates the inner physician.

Otto Buchinger and the origins in Germany

Otto Buchinger was born on February 16, 1878, in Darmstadt and was a physician. In September 1917, he fell seriously ill—a throat infection with rheumatic arthritis that nearly cost him his life and left him impaired for a long time. Conventional treatment after the war did not help him. The turning point only came with a fasting cure under the Freiburg physician Gustav Riedlin, which, as Buchinger later described, activated his self-healing powers. This personal experience became his medical life's work.

Buchinger's achievement was to transform fasting from a folk remedy into a medically guided method. In 1920, he opened the Dr. Otto Buchinger Sanatorium in Witzenhausen; in 1935, he moved the clinic to Bad Pyrmont. In the same year, his main work, The Therapeutic Fasting and Its Auxiliary Methods, was published, in which he described the method in detail. He combined the physical aspect—abstinence, fluid intake, exercise, warmth—with an inner, contemplative side. This connection between medicine and reflection remains the hallmark of therapeutic fasting in Germany to this day.

This work has become a practice that is now scientifically researched and applied in many medically managed facilities in Germany—including the Naturhotel Tannerhof, introduced by Johannes von Mengershausen and carried on through three generations of doctors since. Thus, the national tradition is linked to a concrete, family-run history in Upper Bavaria.

The ÄGHE: the professional foundation of fasting

A health tradition does not live by history alone, but by professional maintenance. In Germany, this task is undertaken by the Medical Association for Fasting and Nutrition (ÄGHE), a society of physicians that provides a scientific basis for therapeutic fasting. They issue the guidelines for fasting therapy, and further studies on fasting therapy can be viewed through them.

The guidelines were originally published in 2002 by an expert panel in the journal Forschende Komplementärmedizin und Klassische Naturheilkunde and were updated after 2013 as an expert panel update of the consensus version. They describe the methodology, patient selection, contraindications, and the medical supervision of fasting. The use of fasting under professional supervision is categorized for conditions including obesity and metabolic syndrome, high blood pressure, rheumatic diseases, fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, chronic pain syndromes, and migraines. Which of these topics are relevant in an individual case is always a matter for medical clarification at the Tannerhof.

A large observational study by Wilhelmi de Toledo and colleagues, published in PLOS One in 2019, demonstrates how well longer-term fasting is tolerated. The study followed 1,422 people through fasting periods of four to twenty-one days using the Buchinger method. Adverse effects occurred in less than one percent of participants, with no severe or lasting issues reported; physical and emotional well-being increased significantly across all groups. Of the 404 participants with existing health complaints, 84.4 percent reported an improvement, and 93.2 percent of all participants experienced no hunger during the fast. Such findings make it clear why therapeutic fasting has remained a respected medical practice in Germany.

What characterizes medically supervised therapeutic fasting

Medical supervision is not strictly mandatory for fasting, but it is highly recommended—and it is the defining feature of the German fasting tradition. It distinguishes guided therapeutic fasting from a fasting week attempted alone at home. The essence of this supervision can be summarized in a few key points:

• An initial medical consultation, designed holistically: medical history, physical examination including bioimpedance analysis to measure body composition, and medication review.
• Individual coordination of duration, accompanying treatments, and the refeeding rhythm—developed together with the guest, not according to a rigid template.
• Monitoring of the process by a medical team experienced in fasting, who keep an eye on vital signs and circulation as well as the individual's well-being.
• A final consultation that evaluates what has changed and provides advice for nutrition afterward.

At the Naturhotel Tannerhof, therapeutic fasting is always medically supervised because the hotel’s medical expertise is an integral part of the fasting process. The doctors at the Tannerhof are experts in fasting. The environment and medical supervision are equally important: fasting in a moving landscape becomes more intense, and the supervision gives the process direction. Medical services are billed through the private practice at the Tannerhof.

The range of accompanying therapies is intentionally broad, because fasting is more than just a change in diet for a few days. Medical treatments include bioimpedance analysis, IHHT altitude training (depending on the program), and, if medically appropriate, ozone autohemotherapy. In addition, there are wraps and compresses such as the liver-supporting hay flower wrap, aroma wraps, as well as mud and warm packs, baths, and showers like the Kneipp alternating shower and magnesium-rich detox baths. These are complemented by massages such as the fasting massage, the detox massage with royal oil or the acidosis massage, lymphatic drainage, and foot reflexology. Respiratory therapy is also included. For the mental aspect, we offer psychotherapeutic coaching, nature coaching, business and communication coaching, and art therapy. Fasting expertise is embedded in every department of the hotel, from the reception and restaurant to the therapists, and fasting guests enjoy their meals in the "Fasterstube," a dedicated dining room for those fasting.

Why people in Germany fast

The motivations are diverse. Many guests are looking for a mental shutdown, a counterpoint to sensory overload and constant acceleration. Others want relief from excess, where eating is reduced to the bare essentials—often leading to a more intense enjoyment of food afterward. Still others come with a medical concern or the desire to reorganize their daily lives after fasting.

During fasting, two processes occur simultaneously in the body that are often confused but can be clearly distinguished. One is fat burning: as readily available carbohydrate stores are depleted, the metabolism switches from glucose to fatty acids and ketone bodies within the first few days. The other is autophagy—the body's own recycling and cleaning processes at the cellular level, where cell components are broken down, utilized, and reorganized. The fundamental nature of this mechanism was highlighted by the 2016 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, which was awarded to Yoshinori Ohsumi for his discovery of the mechanisms of autophagy. To put it more elegantly: all recycling processes are activated, and cleaning takes place everywhere—cellularly, vascularly, in the connective tissue, in the gut, in the brain, and in the liver and kidneys.

Added to this are mental effects. Often, the need for sleep decreases while sleep quality becomes lighter. Some people experience a "fasting euphoria" due to altered serotonin metabolism, which varies in intensity from person to person. Fasting creates a break and an abundance of time with oneself and for oneself. Whether therapeutic fasting is suitable in an individual case is always a matter for medical clarification at the Tannerhof—it is not planned for those who are pregnant, breastfeeding, or suffering from anorexia, and for those with chronic illnesses or current medication, a preliminary telephone consultation can be requested before arrival.

The Tannerhof: Fasting tradition in the mountains

A tradition becomes tangible when it has a home. The Naturhotel Tannerhof is located in Bayrischzell, in the upper Leitzach Valley, about 75 kilometers southeast of Munich, with views of the valley and the Wendelstein mountain. The hotel is situated in the middle of the Alpine foothills between the Wendelstein and the Sonnwendjoch, yet remains easily accessible. It is a family-run nature hotel in its fifth generation of family ownership and fourth generation of doctors, founded in 1905—not a health clinic with a mountain panorama, but a house that explains what fasting is based on long experience. My hideaway in the mountains.

The location is more than just an address. It is the 16 hectares of grounds, the mountain stream, the alpine meadows, the "air huts" from 1905, and the four hut towers by Florian Nagler. It is the orangery, a long retreat space among plants, and the "BadeHarpfe" with its Finnish sauna, panoramic relaxation room, endurance and strength fitness area, and the 25-meter outdoor natural pool that opens up the view between the Wendelstein and the Sonnwendjoch. The paths around the hotel and the clear, pure mountain air give fasting over several days a unique form.

Exercise remains part of the fasting process, in moderate doses. Moderate endurance training and moderate strength training are available, as are yoga, Feldenkrais, Tai Chi, resistance band training, and respiratory therapy. Summit tours and running are possible, but only at a pace that suits fasting—the body nourishes itself from within. Those who would like to combine fasting with quiet tours through the mountain landscape will find the "Hiking and Fasting" combination at the Tannerhof. Those who would like to view the specific framework of a fasting stay and book online can find it in the "Body Detox" program.

A fasting week and its transition

A fasting week does not start with the soup. Before arrival, the doctors at Tannerhof recommend one or more relief days at home, such as a fruit, potato, vegetable, or raw food day—the guest decides how many. The length of stay and the fasting package are already booked at this point. During the intake interview on the first day of fasting, the specific schedule within this framework is coordinated and can be adjusted, particularly if an extension is desired.

During the fasting days, herbal tea, mineral water, lemon and ginger water, mild vegetable broth, and freshly pressed fruit or vegetable juices maintain the rhythm, along with about three liters of fluid per day. In the evening, there is a choice of buttermilk or a plant-based protein supplement, and if necessary, a base preparation to counteract acidic metabolic products and uric acid crystals. A spoonful of honey or an espresso is allowed to bridge a low point without compromising the fasting process.

How long one fasts is a recommendation, not a rule. At the Tannerhof, five fasting days or more are recommended because otherwise, the metabolic shift has little room to take effect. For first-time fasters, a week is ideal: about seven fasting days plus two to three refeeding days, totaling around ten days. For health-related concerns, longer stays are welcome, with close medical supervision. The refeeding phase is not an afterthought to fasting, but its continuation by other means: breaking the fast still counts as a fasting day, starting with an apple and very conscious chewing, followed by a gradual return to solid foods and stimulants over about a third of the fasting period. In the final consultation with the attending physicians, nutrition afterward is also discussed. If a sustainable change is desired, the "Slanke Tanne Low Carb" program can follow, which is our in-house low-carb diet. Intermittent fasting in a 16/8 rhythm is not a substitute for the Buchinger method, but the recommended way to carry the benefits of compact fasting into everyday life. When the focus is on gaining enjoyment and zest for life rather than on deprivation.

Thus, a national heritage and a specific location combine to create something greater than a short period of abstinence. Perhaps that is exactly the old Tannerhof motto in its modern form: Man, become essential.

Discover therapeutic fasting at Tannerhof

Naturhotel Tannerhof has been offering Buchinger therapeutic fasting for over 70 years: medically supervised, with experienced staff in every department, and nestled in Bayrischzell between alpine meadows, mountain streams, and views of the Wendelstein. If you would like to view the specific details and book online, you can find them in our Body Detox program, on the Buchinger Method page, and in our Therapeutic Fasting and Slim Fir hub.