INTERMITTENT FASTING: 4 POINTS ON HOW TO GET STARTED
CONTENTS
- WHAT IS INTERMITTENT FASTING?
- DIFFERENT METHODS OF FASTING
- KNOWING THE PROS AND CONS
- FASTING SAFELY
1.WHAT IS INTERMITTTENT FASTING?
Intermittent Fasting is a method of diet control in which we follow a regular scheduled switching between fasting and eating food. Even though this has remained a proven remedy to maintain healthy weight since so long this became practiced extensively ever since the pandemic struck. Intermittent fasting achieves the weight loss goals through decreasing apetite by slowing down the body’s metabolic rate. Long hours of having very less food will cause lysis of the stored glycogen in the liver cells inorder to meet the energy expenditures of the body and it will also cause mobilization of fatty acids and ketones which will ultimately lead to weight loss.
2.DIFFERENT METHODS OF FASTING
This method of diet control could be adopted in not one but several ways. Also when intermittent fasting serves as a very convenient and effective method for some it could also be non effective for some others. Understanding the various patterns of carrying out intermittent fasting is important because otherwise it carries a very high risk of putting oneself at unnecessary risks of not getting proper nutrition.
Calorie free beverages like water or unsweetened tea and coffee even while fasting helps to control apetite while keeping you hydrated.
Eventhough the method of is of immense benefits , it’s advised for the following category to take all the necessary healthy precautions before seriously undertaking fasting inorder to avoid dangerous counter effects.
- Children and adolescents
- Pregnant woman or those who are actively breastfeeding
- Patients suffering from Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
- People under medication
- Those who have the history of eating disorders
3.KNOWING THE PROS AND CONS
Whatever be the reason for starting out on a routine, it’s always mandatory that we weigh the pros and cones of it. Intermittent fasting being a mostly preferred dieting routine along with its set of pros possess some cones too which shouldn’t be neglected.
a.PROS OF INTERMITTENT FASTING
- INCREASED WEIGHT LOSS: Eating during the set window period will reduce the number of calories consumed in a day. This will boost the metabolism which in turn leads to breakdown of the stored glycogen in liver cells and also the mobilization of fatty acids and ketones.
- DISEASE PREVENTION: Intermittent fasting along with its many benefits helps a great deal in improving metabolic health, immunity boosting and also reduces the risk of the following diseases
- Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus: It reduces the fasting insulin and blood sugar, decreasing the risk of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus
- Heart Diseases: Intermittent fasting reduces the risk of heart attacks by lowering cholesterol, blood pressure, Insulin and blood sugar levels
- Cancer: Risk of occurrence of various types of cancers are prevented through inactivating the pro-proliferating mechanisms and killing off stubborn cancer cells.
- Neurodegenerative Diseases: It increases the Brain Derived Neurotrophic factor which is associated with memory and learning, thus reducing the risk of many neurodegenerative diseases
- Managing inflamations
- Cell health and vibrancy
- EXTENDED LIFE SPAN: Intermittent fasting has proved to increase life span eventhough the potential benefits of intermittent fasting for human longevity are yet to be investigated
- POLY-CYSTIC OVARIAN SYNDROME(PCOS): High insulin in the body is seen in PCOS. High insulin can impair ovulation and cause the ovaries to make excess testosterone. Insulin production in the body is increased at the time of meals. Therefore by decreasing the stimulation through fasting lowers the levels of insulin production and then the body will be able to better manage the androgen production since insulin exerts its effect on the production and synthesis of other hormones in the body.
b.CONS OF INTERMITTENT FASTING
Inspite of the surplus benefits of the method, the following comes as the potential side effects of intermittent fasting
- Hunger, weakness and tiredness during the initial days of adopting intermittent fasting
- Over eating during the window period of fasting could result in excessive hunger which will cause weight gain thus providing negative results.
- Can cause eating disorders
4.FASTING SAFELY
As it goes like the old proverb ‘Prevention is better than cure’, it’s extremely important that we understand how to safely practice intermittent fasting. Some things to be noted before committing to intermittent fasting are:
- Ensuring that majority of the fasting period is taken up with sleeping so as to ensure adequate rest for the body and also not to deplete too much energy during fasting.
- Any meal that we’re having should be taken two hours before sleeping.
- After waking up, ensure that you take your breakfast within half an hour(especially if you’re insulin resistant).
- Take care to avoid overeating during the window period
