dose21:36What are the benefits of intermittent fasting?
Intermittent fasting is becoming more researched and more widely discussed. This week, nephrologist and intermittent fasting expert Jason Fong, Ph. share tips about
Intermittent fasting (IF) isn’t a new diet, but researchers and experts say it’s an area of potential.
It’s important to know that research on intermittent fasting is “still in its early stages,” said Amy Kirkham, an assistant professor in the Department of Clinical Cardiovascular Health at the University of Toronto. I have led several studies on time-restricted eating, which is a form of
Intermittent fasting is generally defined as a cycle of eating and then fasting.
The length of fasting varies from person to person and approach.
“The goal is not to be deficient or overdose, but to balance eating and fasting, because both are very important to us,” says Dr. Jason Fong, nephrologist and author of several books on IF. told CBC. dose Guest host Dr. Peter Lynn.
Intermittent fasting is “kind of a reset” for your body, says Anna Aridina, a registered dietitian based in Richmond Hill, Ontario. Stopping eating prompts our bodies to cleanse themselves and remove old cells, she added.
Fung et al. say there are promising studies showing the health benefits of IF, including improved cardiovascular health.
Studies show that many of the health benefits of fasting are usually seen between 14 and 16 hours, Aridina says.
“Studies show that you are fasting during this period. [it] It can have markers that are very important for metabolic health, such as cholesterol, blood sugar, and inflammation.
But before thinking about fasting, Allidina and Fung stressed that fasting isn’t for everyone.
For those interested, here’s what the experts need to know about intermittent fasting.
Is it safe?
For most people, it’s absolutely safe to suspend eating for a period of time, says Aridina.
“It’s absolutely fine to give your body a break and it’s actually good for you,” she said.
People who shouldn’t try intermittent fasting include:
- People with a history of eating disorders.
- People who are underweight or malnourished.
- pregnant woman.
- lactating women.
- Children.
Allidina and Fung recommend consulting with your healthcare provider before attempting intermittent fasting.
Is there only one way to fast intermittently?
There are several different approaches to intermittent fasting.
Time-restricted eating (TRE) is a common method of restricting meals and snacks to specific times of the day.
According to Fung, the most common fasting strategy is fasting for 16 hours and eating within eight hours.
“So you could eat from 11am to 7pm, or you could eat earlier from 9am to 4pm, but that’s one of the most common schedules,” he said. Told.
Another approach is the 5:2 method. This is how he eats normally for 5 days and then 2 days a week limits his calories to about 500 calories a day for him and about 600 for men.
Alternate-day fasting (ADF) is eating food for eight hours and nothing the next day, equivalent to about 36 hours of fasting.
Fung adds that intermittent fasting is flexible.
“There are pluses and minuses to all these strategies, so it’s not one right and one wrong, it’s about finding what really works for you,” he said.
Are there any health benefits?
yes. However, it depends on the length of the fasting and the fasting type.
Anecdotally, Fung and Allidina hear from people who have tried intermittent fasting that they feel more alert, more energetic, and less tired.
Research on other health benefits is mixed.
In a review of clinical trials, University of Illinois researchers found that three major types of intermittent fasting—TRE, the 5:2 diet, and ADF—provide “mild to moderate weight loss” in overweight and obese people. I have found that it can cause
They’re the most popular weight-loss trends right now, but do the keto diet, green tea, and intermittent fasting diet live up to the hype? explain.
They noted that mild to moderate weight loss was about a 1-8% change from baseline. ’ they say. Their review has been published In the 2021 Peer-Reviewed Annual Review of Nutrition Journal.
They went on to say that these regimens “may also improve” some aspects of cardiometabolic health, such as blood pressure.
Korean researcher giving a presentation Their systematic review and meta-analysis A 2020 peer-reviewed Nutrients journal found that limiting meal times can help you lose weight and improve cardiovascular health.
According to Fung, the reason you might lose weight while fasting is because your body uses two different types of energy: sugar and fat.
When the body runs out of glucose (the main type of sugar in the blood), it turns it into fat storage, a process known as metabolic switching.
But there are studies, including one published a week ago in the Journal of the American Heart Association, suggesting that an intermittent fasting approach may not be as good for weight loss as caloric restriction. .
the study Published in the New England Journal of Medicine Last year’s study showed that among 139 obese participants, a calorie-restricted, time-restricted diet was “less beneficial” than daily calorie restriction.
Other researchers who led the randomized clinical trial And results published in 2020 found that the time-restricted diet did not show significantly different weight loss or cardiometabolic benefits compared to the control group.
another Research published at JAMA peer-reviewed in 2017researchers did not find alternate-day fasting to be better for weight loss or weight maintenance compared to daily calorie restriction.
Kirkham says more research on intermittent fasting is needed.
“More research is needed to truly fully understand all the different parameters and their potential health effects and safety within specific populations. Carbohydrate control.
More research is needed on the intermittent fasting approach, especially the long-term effects, according to several researchers who published the study.
I would like to try it, how do I get started?
Before you start intermittent fasting, Aridina recommends making sure your diet contains enough essential nutrients.
“Once you’ve done that, start with 12 hours of fasting and increase to 14 to 15 hours, then slowly introduce intermittent fasting and see how it makes you feel.
She adds that fasting doesn’t have to be done every day at first because it takes time to work it into your schedule.
Kirkham says there are also free apps to help people track their intermittent fasting.
Most people deal with changing their eating schedule after that first week, she adds. When starting out, it’s important to remember that mild symptoms such as headaches, hunger, and irritability are common.
“The system may come as a bit of a shock at first, but after trying it for two weeks…and if you don’t feel better, I think you probably have the answer.
“Like any health intervention, it is not a one-size-fits-all.”
