What do you know about fasting? If you are like me, I thought it meant going without food, starving and tired, and being hangry. Yes, I said hangry. When I’m hungry, I get cranky. I’ve skipped meals accidentally or fasted for premedical testing, but never for health benefits. Many of our attitudes around food and eating are built on societal norms and have no scientific basis. The idea of eating three meals a day has only been around for two centuries. It has never been a biological mandate. Then we added snacks between these meals, all while sitting in front of the TV. We wonder why 73.6% of Americans are overweight (CDC), and 41.9% of those are obese. That translates to 1 in 3 adults being overweight and 2 in 5 adults being obese. This high food consumption, coupled with sedentary lifestyles, is the root of obesity and chronic illnesses. I find these statistics staggering, showing an epidemic-level health crisis. But what if there was a natural way to counter obesity and chronic illness and live a longer, healthier life? Fasting may be the answer.
When we constantly eat, our biological systems can’t keep up, and their natural cleaning systems can’t perform their jobs. Our body is packed full of repair and rejuvenation mechanisms. Our cells dispose of harmful waste through a process called autophagy. What inhibits autophagy? Chronic illnesses and aging, and diseases like diabetes and obesity. Autophagy is essential for cell function. It recycles damaged cell parts, removes nonfunctioning parts, and destroys pathogens like viruses and bacteria.
Autophagy plays a part in aging and longevity. As we age, autophagy decreases, which can lead to a buildup of cellular junk and cells that are not functioning properly. This condition can lead to cells that no longer work or may be harmful to multiply, which is how cancer cells form. Autophagy is essential for the prevention of aging, disease, and cancer.
What does autophagy have to do with fasting? Fasting can activate autophagy, which helps slow down the aging process and improve cell health. Now that we have determined the reason for fasting in aging, let’s explore what it is and how to start.
Fasting has been around for millennia. Today, social media touts intermittent fasting as a weight-loss option, but it is not new. Many cultures have used fasting for physical and mental health throughout history, including ancient religions, Indigenous peoples, and modern activists. Today, modern science uses fasting as a medical precursor to blood work and surgery.
Fasting began around 1500 BC with the Vedic, Hindu, and Jainism religions. Ancient religious practices around fasting included holidays, divine teachings, and penance. In ancient Greece, Hippocrates, Plato, and Aristotle promoted fasting to improve physical well-being and mental clarity. The ancient Greeks believed that fasting was an instinct that could help patients with certain illnesses recover. It’s interesting that, without modern-day science and technology, the ancient Greeks knew what we know now.
What we know now is backed by science with proven results. Fasting contributes to weight loss, improved metabolism, lower blood sugar levels, reduced inflammation, improved heart health, boosts memory, improves brain function, initiates cell repair, and increases HGH secretion. Wow, that is quite a list of health benefits. Today, the hot trend is intermittent fasting, but a 24-hour fast has even bigger physical and mental benefits.
Let’s look at what happens hourly after eating:
0–4 hours: Your body burns off the food you just ate and stores any extra energy.
4–16 hours: You may start to see the benefits of fat burning and the start of autophagy.
16–24 hours: Your body is in the fat-burning zone, and autophagy has started. This is the point of effective weight loss.
24-72 hours: Ketone production has started, which fuels our brains and increases brain function.
Autophagy is in full swing. Your brain function experiences clarity and focus, and your energy levels are very high.
The 16:8 intermittent fast is fasting for 16 hours and doing all eating within an 8-hour window. This type of fast has been proven to have many benefits, including:
–Weight loss: fasting is especially good for visceral fat, which is the harmful fat around the abdomen.
–Blood sugar control: lowering blood sugar, and reducing insulin resistance.
–Improved heart health: improves blood pressure, and a resting heart rate. A 2018 pilot study found that 16:8 fasting significantly decreased systolic blood pressure in participants.
–Improved memory: not eating for 10–16 hours initiates ketosis. When your body uses up fat energy stores, it releases fatty acids called ketones. These have been proven to protect memory, improve learning functions, and slow brain diseases like dementia.
–Natural detox: helps balance our gut and reduces inflammation. Fasting can help with problems like asthma, arthritis, fatty liver disease, and cancer. (A note of caution: ketones produced by fasting can also have detrimental effects on cancerous tumors by increasing growth.)
–Improved sleep: fasting can help regulate the circadian rhythm. Which improves our sleep.
The 24-hour fast is not eating food for 24 hours. A once-a-week, 24-hour fast can have long-term health benefits.
–Weight loss: consuming fewer calories over time, and energy restrictions help to correct and balance metabolism.
–Improved cardiovascular health: fasting reduces oxidative stress in the cardiovascular system and minimizes inflammation.
–Blood sugar: fasting helps the body break down sugar better, reducing the risk of diabetes.
–Increase human growth hormone: research shows that fasting can cause human growth hormone levels to spike up to 2000% in men and 1300% in women, HGH helps build muscle, lowers fat levels, and improves muscle mass.
–Improved gut health: fasting can give the digestive system a rest, which reduces inflammation and improves gut microbes. This has positive effects on energy, mood, and the immune system.
The biggest benefit of fasting is what it does for our brains. Studies show fasting and inducing autophagy may reduce the plaque buildup associated with Alzheimer’s disease. Let’s see how it works and its benefits. The secret ingredient in fasting and improved brain function is ketones. When we fast, decreased glucose initiates ketosis, and our brain uses ketones for fuel.
The benefits of ketones as fuel for the brain are:
Improved cognition: Fasting improves cognitive function, learning, and memory. It also heals slow, age-related cognitive decline and reduces brain damage.
Increased stress resistance: Fasting can help the brain resist stress, including oxidative stress and inflammation, which reduces the risk of brain disorders.
Neurogenesis: Fasting promotes the growth of new neurons in the hippocampus, the region in the brain associated with learning and memory. This process is called neurogenesis and is made possible by the production of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which helps maintain neuronal survival and synaptic function.
Increased blood flow: Fasting increases cerebral blood flow (CBF), which delivers more oxygen and glucose to the brain to support metabolism.
Ketone production: Fasting for 24-48 hours switches the body’s fuel sources from glucose to ketones. Ketones are an important energy source for the brain, and research suggests ketones may help with neurological conditions like Alzheimer’s disease, mild cognitive impairment, seizure disorders, and neurotrauma.
Fasting can lead to longevity by triggering a metabolic switch and activating autophagy. This process helps cells function better and lowers the risk of age-related diseases. It is the science of living longer. By restricting calories, the body decreases cellular damage and helps to maintain healthy DNA. Fasting is a holistic aging practice and part of a healthy lifestyle. Mixing up intermittent fasting and a weekly 24-hour fast will reap the anti-aging benefits of fasting. Begin with a short fast and build up to a longer one. You will not starve, you will not die, and you will not collapse if you don’t eat. The only thing that will occur is increased health and mental well-being. Try fasting and discover the endless possibilities of aging.