What You Need to Know About Intermittent Fasting

Most of us are wired to eat three meals a day, with five- to six-hour intervals between meals.

Medical studies show that fasting for about three days or even a week may help improve the immune system or general health condition. A new diet trend called intermittent fasting integrates fasting into the daily eating schedule.

                                                                                                                                             

The practice of intermittent fasting or the eat-and-fast plan varies, according to practitioners. But there are two main approaches. The first is to limit calorie intake to 500-600 calories for two days a week and eat normally for five days a week. The second is to limit the eating time period to within an eight- to ten-hour window. For example, you may schedule your meals between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m and fast outside those hours.

While this eating pattern may help lose pounds, experts say it can have detrimental effects on a person’s health.

It can trigger or worsen eating disorders. Intermittent fasting may promote the unhealthy binge-and-purge routine. You can eat almost anything during the feeding state but may feel guilty and ashamed afterwards for overeating and overindulging. If your mental and emotional state is fragile, this may lead to or worsen eating disorders like bulimia, wherein one binges on food and then purges. This can have serious effects on your health.

It can increase stress and anxiety. Studies show that hunger can increase the stress hormone cortisol, leaving a person angry and craving something good to eat. Most intermittent fasters try to live off caffeine, but too much of it can increase anxiety and stress.

You can develop intolerance to certain foods and suffer inflammation. Fasting leaves you hungry, which prompts you to eat whatever you want later. Your “break-the-fast” diet most likely consists of gluten, dairy, soy and artificial sweeteners. These are reactive food that can contribute to a leaky gut and serious health conditions, such as food intolerances, gastric ulcers, diabetes and esophageal and colorectal cancer.

You may have sleep problems. People practicing intermittent fasting often complain about feeling restless before going to sleep. Food may be the reason for this. If you eat refined and processed carbohydrates, like white rice, during dinner, you are more likely to experience blood sugar crashes, which can interrupt sleep. 

Making changes to your diet is good to have a healthy body. But before making such changes, be sure to do your research, consult your doctor and know the limits of your body. 

The Truth About Fad Diets

“Fast and easy” diet programs are appealing to many people trying to lose weight. That’s because they want to be able to eat what they want and still lose weight. But are those methods safe, healthy and effective?

Here are some facts about fad diets to help people make informed decisions:

Fad diets may not be healthy. Fad diets may have short- and long-term effects on the body. In the short term, you may lose pounds but drastic weight loss without proper nutrition may have serious long-term effects on the body. When the body loses weight, the vital organs such as the liver and kidney will be overworked, as they try to get rid of excess fat and toxins from the body. It is important to support the body with proper nutrition. Proper monitoring of the body is needed when losing weight.

Fad diets are not based on nutrition. You are what you eat. Even if you are on a diet, your body needs the right nutrition to keep energy levels high and to avoid adverse health effects in the long run. To get all the essential nutrients, the diet should include balanced nutrition with different food groups, such as lean protein, vegetables and controlled fat and sources of sugar, like healthy carbohydrates and fruits.

Fad diets may lead to health problems. Losing weight may put some stress on vital organs. It is important that a person is healthy to go on a diet. It is always advisable to see a doctor before starting any weight-loss program and to be closely guided throughout the process.

Fad diets results are short-term. Most fad diets will help you lose weight for a short period of time, but you will eventually gain more than what you lost.  When the body does not get balanced nutrition, it will try to preserve itself by slowing down metabolism, making burning fat harder. While there may be weight loss initially, the body will eventually need more food to compensate for the loss, which can lead to more weight gain.

Fad diets may not help get rid of the fats. When weight and muscle are lost initially, you may be led to believe that a diet is effective. However, most weight loss resulting from fasting or starvation comes from burning vital muscles and not the loss of fat. When the body is starving, metabolism causes it to store energy, which it gets from body fat. But when there is little fat or muscle left, the body will start to metabolize the organs that are made of lean tissue. This may lead to stroke, heart attack or liver and kidney failure.

To lose weight, increase vegetable consumption, drink more water, eat lean protein, reduce fats and sugar consumption, including refined carbohydrates. Healthy habits like sleeping well and exercising will also aid healthy weight loss.

While you feel the need to lose weight, remember that your health matters more than the numbers on the weighing scale. Do your research before trying any fad diets.