What is intermittent fasting?
Most diets focus on what you should eat, but fasting from time to time is about when you eat.
By fasting in moderation, you only eat at certain times. Few days a week, a day or few hours, just one meal a can help your body burn fat. And scientific evidence points to specific health benefits, too.
Johns Hopkins neuroscientist Mark Mattson, has been studying moderate fasting for 25 years. He says our bodies have evolved so that they can stay without food for hours, or a few days or more. In prehistoric times, before people learned to farm, they were hunters and gatherers who came to live – and prosper – for a long time without food. Needed: It took a lot of time and energy to hunt deer and gather nuts and berries.
Even 50 years ago, it was easy to maintain a healthy weight. Johns Hopkins nutritionist Christie Williams, M.S., R.D.N., explains: “There were no computers, and the TV programs were turned off at 11 p.m.; people stop eating because they are about to go to bed. The parts were very small. More people are working and playing outside and, more often than not, getting more exercise. ”
Today, TV, the Internet, and other entertainment are available 24/7. We stay awake for long hours to catch our favorite shows, play games and chat online. We sit and eat all day – and all night. “
More calories and less exercise can mean a higher risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease and other diseases. Scientific research shows that short-term fasting can help reverse these trends.
How does intermittent fasting work?
There are several different ways to do intermittent fasting, but they are all based on the choice of regular fasting and fasting times. For example, you could try eating for just eight hours each day and fasting for the rest of your life. Or two days a week you could choose to eat only one meal a day. There are many intermediate fasting schedules.
Mattson says that after hours of fasting, the body shuts down its sugar stores and begins to burn fat. He refers to this as metabolic changes.
“Normal diet of many Americans intermittent fasting is contrary, who eat at bedtime,” Mattson said. “If a person eats three times, snacks as well, and does not exercise, he eats every time, and does not burn their fat stores.”
Intermittent fasting works by increasing the time when your body burns the calories eaten during your last meal and begins to burn fat.
Intermittent Fasting Programs
It is important to see your doctor before you start fasting in moderation. Once you have found his progression, the real practice is simple. You can choose the daily diet, which limits daily diet to one to six to eight hours each day. For example, you can choose to try 16/8 fasting: eight hours of fasting and 16 fasting. Williams is a follower of the daily routine: He says most people find it easy to stick to this pattern for a long time.
The other, known as the 5: 2 method, involves eating five days a week. For the next two days, limit yourself to one 500-600 calorie diet. An example would be if you choose to eat normally every day of the week except Mondays and Thursdays, which can be your meal days once.
Long periods without food, such as 24, 36, 48 and 72 hours of fasting, are not the best for you and can be dangerous. Walking for a long time without food may actually encourage your body to start storing more fat due to starvation.
Mattson’s research shows that it can take up to two to four weeks before the body becomes accustomed to moderate fasting. You may feel hungry or confused as you get used to a new habit. But, you see, the research articles that are most effective during remediation often stick to the system, because they see that they feel better.
What can I eat while fasting from time to time?
Can you drink coffee while fasting? That’s the question in many coffee lovers’ minds; actually, at times when you do not eat, water and caloric drinks such as black coffee and tea are allowed.
And during your meal times, “normal eating” does not mean insanity. You will not be able to lose weight or be healthier if you pack your meal times with high-calorie junk food, fried items of great size and handling.
But Williams’ favorite thing about intermittent fasting is that it allows for a wide variety of foods – and enjoys it. He said “people to be aware of enjoy eating delicious and nutritious food we want” He adds that eating with others and sharing mealtimes add satisfaction and support good health.
Williams, like many nutritionists, considers the Mediterranean diet to be a good plan of what to eat, whether you try to fast from time to time or not. You will not make a mistake if you choose complex carbohydrates, such as grains, leafy vegetables, healthy fats and lean proteins.
Benefits of intermittent Fasting
Studies show that fasting does more than just burn fat. Mattson explains, Mattson explains, “they affect the body and brain. When these changes occur in this metabolic state”
One of Mattson’s studies published in the New England Journal of Medicine revealed data on a list of health benefits associated with this practice. These include longevity, slim body and sharp mind.
” There are many things during fasting that can protect the body’s immune system from heart disease, chronic diseases, age-related diseases, cancer and tuberculosis,” he said.
Here are some of the fasting benefits that research has shown so far:
• Thinking and memory. Studies have found that moderate fasting increases working memory in animals and oral memory in adults.
• Heart health. Intermittent fasting improves blood pressure and resting heart rate and other cardiovascular events.
• Exercise. Young men who fasted showed fat loss while maintaining muscle mass. Rats that eat other days have shown better endurance in running.
• Diabetes and obesity. In animal studies, periodic fasting prevented obesity. And in six short studies, obese adults lost weight through regular fasting.
• Tissue health. In animals, intermittent fasting reduces tissue damage in surgery and improved outcomes.
Is it safe to fast from time to time?
Some people try to fast for a while to gain weight, while others use methods to deal with chronic conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome, high cholesterol or arthritis. But moderate fasting is not for everyone.
Williams emphasizes that before you try to fast from time to time (or any diet), you should consult your primary care physician first. Some people should avoid trying to fast in moderation:
• Under 18 years of age Children and adolescents.
• Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding.
• People with blood sugar or diabetes problems.
• Those with a past of eating disorders.
However, says Williams, people who are not in this category who can fast from time to time safely can continue the program permanently. “It can be experience of a life-changing,” she says.
Keep in mind that fasting from time to time may have different effects on different people. Talk to your doctor if you start experiencing unusual anxiety, headaches, nausea or other symptoms after starting a moderate fast diet. Read more…