Everything to Know About Fasting

There are a lot of different aspects of fasting that should be considered while discussing the impacts of fasting on lives, bodies, and health. You will get to know about all of the important things about fasting in this post.

What is Fasting?

Intermittent fasting is the most common type of fasting. It means following a steady eating pattern that consists of specific periods of eating and fasting. There are no specific guidelines about the kind of food that you eat during fasting. Instead, the focus of the fasting cycle is on when you should consume healthy calories. Therefore, it is described as an eating pattern and not a diet lifestyle.

The duration of the fasting is dependent on the type of fasting and the conditions in which you are living. Commonly, a fast lasts from 16-hours to 24-hours, twice a week. With the recent rise in the popularity of different types of fasting, some people might assume that it is a new concept. However, fasting has been practiced since the beginning of times as it has strong roots in ancient history and religions like Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, and other religions.

Methods of Fasting

There are different types of ways in which a fast can be observed. Since fasting is an important religious ritual, many people adopt the fasting practices that have been commanded to them through scriptures. For example, Muslims fast during the whole Islamic month of Ramadan. They have to observe soft dry fast from dawn to dusk.

Some of the most common methods are:

• 16:8 Method, which means skipping breakfast and limiting your eating period to 8 hours.
• Eat-Stop-Eat is a common fasting strategy, which means fasting for the period of the whole 24 hours, usually twice a week.
• 5:2 Diet in which you consume about 500 calories on two alternate days of the week.

Impact of Fasting on Cells and Hormones

Fasting has the ability to affect your body at the cellular and molecular level. For instance, your body gets used to triggering hormones to use fat as the energy source. Moreover, the process of cell repair is also increased while fasting.

Some other impacts are:

• Human growth hormone (HGH) levels are significantly increased, which can lead to rapid fat loss and muscle gain.
• Insulin sensitivity enhances, which is useful in managing diabetes.
• Cholesterol, blood pressure levels regulation, and autophagy also occur.

Other health benefits of fasting include:

• Reduced inflammation
• Improved cardiac health
• Fewer chances of developing severe conditions like cancer
• Better brain health
• Good for the skin and keeping your body healthy, young, and fit.
• Some studies have proven a strong link between longevity and fasting.

Fasting and Weight Loss

Fasting is an effective tool for losing weight quickly and easily. As you consume a very limited diet in an intermittent fast, your total calorie intake is reduced. Moreover, growth hormone levels are increased, which triggers the fat burning process.

Conclusion

Fasting is extremely beneficial for health. If you are a young and healthy individual, you should definitely consider fasting once in a while to enjoy the massive benefits provided by fasting.