On-again, off-again romances may seem hard on the heart, but sometimes an intermittent affair ends up fueling a healthy relationship. Take Justin Bieber and Hailey Baldwin, who dated off and on from 2015 to 2016, then happily tied the knot in September 2018.

Intermittent fasting turns out to deliver happy endings, too — especially for people who are having a rocky time managing their diabetes or heart disease.

A study in the journal Endocrine Reviews reveals that if you consistently eat your calories within an eight-to-10-hour window (say from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., or from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.), you can prevent and manage metabolic and cardiovascular conditions effectively.

That schedule also improves sleep quality, say the researchers from the Salk Institute for Biological Studies.

In contrast, eating at random times disrupts your body's internal clock, making you prone to chronic diseases. 

And you can step it up even more. If you combine intermittent fasting with a plant-based diet, you're supercharging your ability to reclaim your health, and then stay healthy.

This has never been more important. A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that in 16 U.S. states, at least 35% of residents have obesity, and it affects 22.4% of kids ages 2 to 19.

Luckily, it's easy to implement intermittent fasting, and a plant-based diet can become second nature if you add a serving of fruit and two servings of veggies to each meal.