Feed restriction in fish and crustaceans is gaining interest due to its unusual acceleration of growth after a feed deprivation period. This phenomenon, known as compensatory growth, allows deprived organisms to reach the weight of never‐stressed counterpart organisms. Since feed is the major economic and ecological burden of fish and crustaceans farming, succeeding to reduce its quantity without loss of production may enhance a sustainable aquaculture development. A wide variety of restriction/feeding protocols, involving differences in nature, duration and intensity, have been tested on aquatic organisms. However, not all of them lead to optimal compensatory growth. Furthermore, before extending this practice to industrial setting, it is essential to assess physiological costs associated with both food restriction and compensatory growth. Indeed, although fish and crustaceans appear to be tolerant to dietary restriction, it involves metabolic, digestive, oxidative and immune changes. Nevertheless, return to basal values is not always achieved through refeeding. Compensatory growth has been observed and described in many taxa; however, physiological mechanisms during this process are poorly understood. On the other hand, the acceleration of growth itself appears to generate physiological consequences in organisms, particularly through the generation of oxidative stress. This review provides an overview of the fitness consequences associated with dietary restriction and the subsequent enigmatic compensatory growth in fish and crustaceans.

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