July 14, 2024, 11:44 AM IST
As humans evolved over time, food was often in short supply, prompting us to move from place to place in search of sustenance. There must have been periods when food was unavailable, forcing us to stay hungry. Here are a few observations one can make:
In the morning, we likely drank water first before searching for food. Upon returning, we would cook and eat our meal, a process that took some time. Similarly, in the evenings, we probably finished eating before dark. Evidence suggests that humans gained control over fire only about 400,000 years ago, indicating that campfires were not part of early human evolution. This suggests our eating window was likely under 12 hours.
Our body stores glucose, the readily available form of energy, up to about 2,000 calories: 1,500 in muscles and another 500 in the liver as glycogen. During the night, while our body relaxes or sleeps, our metabolic rate slows to about 40-45 calories per hour, known as the basal rate. Consequently, we deplete our stored energy in about 12 hours. When the liver runs out of glycogen, the body shifts its metabolic pathway from burning glucose to burning fat.
Fat is primarily stored assubcutaneous fat cells under the skin. However, the body also stores fat in three other places: (1) the liver, (2) as visceral fat in the abdomen and around vital organs, and (3) within muscle cells as intramyocellular lipids. These fats are unhealthy and can cause chronic diseases like fatty liver (NAFLD) and diabetes. When the body switches to fat-burning mode, it prefers to burn these unwanted fats first. Therefore, delaying your morning meal beyond 12 hours can effectively burn these toxic fats.
Many cultures intentionally restrict their eating window to a narrow time slot. For example, in Jainism, the ritual called Chauvihar requires one to eat only 48 minutes after sunrise and finish eating 48 minutes before sunset, reducing the eating window to an average of 10.4 hours.
Recent scientific research has demonstrated that time-restricted feeding has numerous health advantages. It dissolves unwanted fat from the liver, visceral organs, and muscle cells, rejuvenating these organs and reducing insulin resistance.
In 2016, the Nobel Prize was awarded to Dr. Yoshinori Ohsumi for his research on how fasting for over 20-22 hours causes the body to recycle dead and damaged cells. This process is called autophagy. When the body recognizes a shortage of food, especially protein, it begins to recycle wasted protein stored in an organelle called lysosome into amino acids. These acids are then released into the blood for use by all cells. Additionally, the body also recycles dead or dysfunctional cells which includes senescent cells and misfolded proteins.
How does hunger work ?
Hunger has little to do with the absence of food in the stomach and more to do with the release of a hormone called Ghrelin, which rises during meal times based on our circadian clock. This makes the initial two days of a fast most difficult.
Benefits of fasting
• Reduces fat mass through Ketosis
• Decreases inflammation and triglycerides
• Heals the digestive system and gut
• Lowers insulin levels, increasing insulin sensitivity and combatting diabetes’s
• Reduces fatty liver
• Raises human growth hormone (HGH) and releases brain derived neurotraffic factor (BDNF). This helps in healing neurological disorders.
• Triggers autophagy, recycling waste proteins and damaged cells, as discovered by Nobel laureate Dr. Yoshinori Ohsumi
• Lowers PKA enzymes in the body fostering new stem cell formation
• Induces detoxifying enzyme pathways, allowing detoxification processes to continue even after fasting has ended.
• Boosts immunity by targeting cancer cells, as recognized by Nobel Laureate Dr. Honzo.
• Slows and reverses the aging process.
Gut health
Over the past two decades, we’ve discovered that a whole colony of microbes lives in our gut. The gut lining, made up of epithelial cells that form tight junctions, protects the body from passing food in the lumen. This lining is safeguarded by two layers of mucus, with microbes residing in the second mucosal layer. When we consume refined, ultra-processed, or animal foods that lack fiber, these mucosal layers become compromised, leading to a leaky gut. This condition is the source of many gut health issues and autoimmune problems. During fasting, the mucin-producing goblet cells, embedded in the epithelial cell lining, produce mucin. This helps rebuild the mucosal layers and heal a leaky gut.
Stages of fasting
The chart below summarizes the various stages of fasting and their effects.
Types of fasting
There are many different ways of fasting, mainly distinguished by:
- What is allowed for consumption during the fast.
- The duration of the fasting period.
Some fasts allow a limited meal, some only water, and some are dry fasts, meaning not even water is allowed. The duration of fasting can vary from part of a day to multiple days or longer. Here is a summary of various types of fasting:
1. Intermittent fasting:
In intermittent fasting, the fasting window can range from 12 to 23 hours and is usually practiced daily. Common routines include 14:10, 16:8, 18:6, or 20:4.
2. OMAD fast
When fasting window becomes a full day (23-24 hours) it is called One Meal A Day or OMAD. Many spiritual masters in India follow this routine. Among Jains this fast is called Aayambil.
3. Ekadashi or Tivihar
This involves skipping a full day’s meals in addition to the normal overnight fasting window. Traditionally observed on the 11th day of the moon but can be kept on alternate Mondays or any chosen day of the week on alternate weeks. Jain Tivihar fast is similar.
4. Prolonged Fast
Any fast extending beyond 1.5 days, lasting from 2 to 10 days or more. Dr Honzo received a Nobel Prize in 2018 for demonstrating that a 10-day OMAD fast once or twice a year can build immunity against major diseases like cancer. The Hindu Navratri fast, observed for 9 days twice a year, and the Jain Paryushana fast, lasting 8 or 10 days consuming only water, are similar.
5. Bracketed dry fasts
Research shows dry fasts (no water) are 2-3 times more beneficial than water-only fasts. A recommended practice is to bracket dry fasts with water fasts, for example, a 12+24+12 fast: 12 hours of water-only fasting followed by a 24 or 48-hour dry fast, ending with another 12-hour water-only fast. Scientifically speaking this is the most beneficial way to fast.
6. Sallekhana
Some Jains practice a prolong fast at the end of their life where they decide to fast until death. It is called Sallekhana.
How to break a fast:
When breaking a fast, care should be taken to introduce food slowly. Break your fast with water, juice, fruits and a small meal, in that order. A rule of thumb to break prolonged fasts is to take half as much time to get back to your regular diet as the duration of the fast.
Tea or coffee during fasting?
An often-asked question is whether drinking black tea or coffee is acceptable during fasting periods. Many doctors do allow black tea/coffee. One reason is that people are so dependent on coffee for their bowel movements. Without tea or coffee some struggle to extend their fasting window. Additionally, a caffeine addiction can cause withdrawal headaches, making fasting difficult. Drinking tea or coffee on an empty stomach is not advisable, as it can cause various problems.
Here are some explanations:
1. Even though black tea and coffee do not contain calories and should not interrupt ketosis during the fasting window, they do reset the circadian clock. Therefore, for daily 16:8 intermittent fasting, they should not be consumed during the fasting window.
2. One objective of fasting is to give the digestive system and secretory glands complete rest. Drinking tea or coffee interrupts this process by stimulating the glands to secrete hormones and digestive fluids. It also causes the liver to release sugar, disrupting the rejuvenation process. The same applies to other additives like lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, methi seeds, amla extract etc. I suggest avoiding adding anything to your water during fasts.
3. The stomach contains hydrochloric acid, which helps digest food. Drinking tea or coffee on an empty stomach increases acidity, potentially leading to heartburn, acid reflux, irritable bowel syndrome, and stomach ulcers.
4. Caffeine on an empty stomach releases cortisol and adrenal hormones, raising heart rate and blood pressure. This signals the liver to release blood sugar to assist in the fight-or-flight response. While this may make you feel more alert, it is unhealthy in the long run as it interferes with your natural circadian rhythm.
5. Caffeine in tea and coffee can lead to anxiety because it lowers your brain’s ability to properly break down serotonin, the hormone that keeps you calm and happy. This can also lead to depression.
6. Reduced serotonin production can affect sleep because the body converts serotonin into melatonin at night. This is why coffee impacts one’s ability to sleep at night.
7. Tea/Coffee are diuretic and increase the amount of fluid the body passes, which can lead to dehydration.
To conclude, fasting is an effective way to remove dead, damaged and senescent cells and misfolded proteins from the body. This long-held custom in many cultures has gained new significance based on recent Nobel Prize-winning research.
To read the article on times of India click here
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