He who eats until he is sick must fast until he is well.

This saying circulates as an English proverb reflecting older moral and medical common sense about diet and self-discipline. In premodern and early modern Britain, overeating was often framed not only as imprudent but as a lapse in temperance, with “fasting” understood as both a practical remedy for digestive distress and a corrective penance for excess. The proverb belongs to a broad tradition of household wisdom that links bodily health to moral restraint: if indulgence produces illness, the appropriate response is abstinence until balance is restored. It is typically transmitted orally and in collections of proverbs rather than tied to a single identifiable speaker or occasion.

The proverb states a simple cause-and-effect ethic: excess carries consequences, and recovery requires restraint. On the literal level, it advises that overeating makes one unwell and that the body needs time without further intake to recuperate. Figuratively, it suggests that any overindulgence—whether in food, pleasure, spending, or power—creates a debt that must be repaid through self-denial and discipline. The line also implies personal responsibility: the remedy is not external rescue but a change in one’s own behavior. Its enduring appeal lies in its blunt symmetry, turning a moment of indulgence into a lesson about moderation and accountability.

He that eats till he is sick must fast till he is well.