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Intermittent Fasting

If Keto diet was the buzz word of 2018, intermittent fasting was the buzz word of 2019. It continues to entice people, especially the ones who are looking for weightloss. I agree that intermittent fasting is a wonderful eating pattern when done in the right way. It aids in weight loss and correcting total internal setting of our hormonal system.

Unfortunately, it is human nature to exploit what gives us results. The same has been happening with intermittent fasting. The recent trends show people are abusing this beautiful concept by fasting for 20-22 hrs, keeping the eating window only 2 or 4 hrs. People don't realize the damage it does to our hormonal system, especially in women.

Let us decipher the concept of intermittent fasting and how can we incorporate it without abusing our body or turning it into a fad.

What is intermittent fasting?

Fasting is a state of being nil per oral (being without food) for a set period so that the digestive system gets to rest. During fasting, the digestive system starts to use the stored fats as energy to sustain the fasting state. 12-16 hours is considered as the ideal fasting period. Exceeding 16 hours of fasting will disturb the endocrinal system and disrupt our hormones.

If you want to incorporate intermittent fasting or IF in your routine, my advice is to look back to what our older generations did. It will be surprising to note that intermittent fasting is exactly what our older generations preached and practiced! The older generation followed three golden rules - get up on time, eat on time and sleep on time. These are the three simple things our body needs to set its circadian rhythm so that our hormones work well with our body requirements.

When we get up and sleep on time, we automatically stop eating for a fixed time interval. In other words, we go into fasting mode. And when we eat on time, we break our fast on-time. Thus we have fixed eating and fasting window.

What happens when we fast?

First 4 hrs - Insulin in body drops.

8 hrs - Blood sugar starts normalizing

10 hrs - Fat burning in the body starts [normal fatty acids in the blood via adipose tissue]

12 hrs - Body enters ketosis [using the ketone bodies as fuel]

Benefits of Intermittent Fasting

1.           Blood sugar regulation

2.           Weight loss

3.           Increased activity of the hippocampus of the brain (Neuroprotective effect)

4.           Detoxification or destruction of the bad cells and regeneration new cells (Autophagy)

5.           Increase in human growth hormone

6.           Convenience

 

How to do Intermittent Fasting?

As we mentioned earlier, to get the best results, we should follow a strict regime of consistent rising, sleeping and eating window. It is recommended to finish your last meal of the day by 6-7 pm. After the last meal, you can choose to drink (wet fast) for a few hours or not to drink (dry fast). Start your day by drinking water and have your breakfast by 9-10 am. Only if your lifestyle doesn't allow you to finish your day early, it is recommended to have the first and last meal late.

If you are a morning workout person, then make sure your pre-workout meal is in place to make sure you are away from any adverse effects. Make sure to never exceed the fasting window to more than 16 hrs as it is not good for the hormones. If you are opting to go for the trending 3 days fasting, ensure that you are not suffering from metabolic disorders or chronic diseases.

Why do people prefer to stay hungry in the morning hours?

The hunger hormone Ghrelin is lowest in the morning. This makes it easy to control the urge of hunger. Hence people prolong the fasting window towards morning.

Problems faced during extreme fasting regime and the solutions

1.           Headache - The most common withdrawal symptom is a headache. During Intermittent fasting, the body goes to low sugar mode or less carbohydrate level. The person might feel low in energy. A shot of black coffee with MCT oil/butter or coconut oil can be a good option. It releases peptide YY hormone and leptin hormone which helps to give the feeling of fullness. But it is important to take a supplement of VitB and magnesium as a regular intake of caffeine can deplete them from the body.

2.           Hair loss: - The reason for hair loss can be inadequate nutrition. As the fasting window goes up, we tend to eat more macros and fewer minerals and vitamins. This results in hair loss. Adding more vegetables and fruits during the eating window or adding supplements of multivitamins like Vit A, D, K, B, omega oil etc might help the situation.

3.           Energy crash: - The prime reason for energy crash can be lack of minerals. It is suggested to take water with a dash of pink salt. Pink salt has 126 minerals and less sodium. Anyhow it should not be cooked. Hence it’s good to have it diluted in water. Adding chromium (around 1000 mcg) as a supplement right after breaking the fast is also recommended. It will help with the sudden rush of calorie in your system especially if you are pre-diabetes or have a diabetic gene in you.

4.           Hitting a plateau (No weight loss) - This happens with any diet techniques. If you are looking at weight loss then it is good to keep changing the pattern of diet and workouts at a timely interval.

5.           Incomplete bowel clearance - Inadequate water intake [in case of dry fasting] and fibre in diet might lead to incomplete bowel clearance. Adding Psyllium husk to your diet can help the situation.

6.           Dark circles: - Inadequate nutrients in the diet can lead to dark circles. Make sure to add more vegetables and fruits during the eating window or try adding supplements of multivitamins - Vit A, D, K, B, omega oil etc. and add more vegetables and fruits during your eating window.

In case your gall bladder is removed, you might need specific digestive enzymes like Lipase and Protease.

If you want to wisely choose not to load your body and system with all the supplements [all the drugs have approved quantity of waste that can’t be filtered, preservatives for shelf life, binding agents for shape, and approved colours], follow the right way to do intermittent fasting and don't overdo it. Make eating healthy and balanced, working out moderately, eating on time, sleeping on time, relaxing and having quality time without gadgets a daily practice. This will help your body make more healthy hormones and keep you healthy from within.

I want to emphasis and quote “weight-loss is the by-product of good health within.”