The Amazing Benefits of Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent Fasting has so many benefits it is hard to believe. From helping you lose weight to increasing your life span, Intermittent fasting can have a huge positive impact on your life!

To begin, Intermittent Fasting works so well for humans because its in our DNA. Over the last million years, humans have evolved to go long periods of time without eating. If you think about it, in caveman or hunter-gatherer times, food was not so easy to come across like it is today. There wasn't a Walmart down the block for a caveman to easily pick up some groceries whenever he was hungry. They had to hunt down their food and sometimes that meant going long hours or even days and weeks without eating. Therefore, the human body knows how to survive even when food is not available.

Studies done on other organisms such as mice and yeast cells also show that their resistance to stress is dramatically increased and most importantly, their lifespan is increased. Mice also see a decrease in fat tissue and cancer cells while at the same time increasing their cognitive function and rebuilding their immune system. If you aren't convinced by mice studies, allow me to show you a few of the benefits proven by human studies. Studies done on humans show that Diabetes, Cardiovascular disease, and cancer rates all decrease when intermittent fasting is implemented.

The majority of the benefits that come with fasting can be traced back to how the human body responds when it doesn't have food. It is forced to use its stored forms of energy and must eat itself. This process is called autophagy and can be thought of as a recyling of old decrepit cells that are used to form new stronger cells. This process is always at work and can be increased with things like exercise and drinking coffee but fasting takes it to another level. Once you get deep enough into your fast, your body will start relying on ketone bodies for fuel. Ketones are a fuel source that is an alternative to traditional glucose. Ketones are made from fat cells after they are processed in the liver. This causes more mental clarity, increased fat burning, and lower insulin levels. This is the prime state for fat burning because your body is stressed which means cortisol will rise however, since insulin is low your body will use stored fat for energy instead of burning glucose. This fasted state also causes inflammatory markers to go down causing you to feel better with less pain and inflammation. Another hormone that fasting has a huge effect on is Human Growth Hormone (HGH). This will help you build new strong muscle and bones.

Although most people think they will be starving during this time, most people find out that it's not as bad as they thought once they give it a chance and get used to it. Your body will start to become fat-adapted and it will become easier the more you do it. Some people even become addicted to it and look foward to doing it everyday because they feel so good when they are fasting. Studies have also shown that BDNF is increased during longer fasts, such as 18+hours, which helps you build new brain cells and new neural connections. Therefore, fasting for longer periods of time is actually making you smarter and increasing your long-term cognitive function.

Another amazing benefit of fasting comes just after 12 hours of fasting. This is a reset of your gut microbiome. Fasting is great for healing your gut and killing off bad bacteria. After your fast is complete, much of the bacteria in your gut will have been starved off which puts you in a prime state to rebuild your gut microbiome. This is why adding in Prebiotics and Probiotics after your fast is a great idea! The gut microbiome is also tied in with other bodily functions such as your immune system and the way your brain functions. Taking care of your gut is very important.

There are several ways to make intermittent fasting easier such as exercising during your fast or drinking fasting-friendly drinks during your fast. These include water, coffee, and tea. You want to aim for zero-calorie drinks and maybe even consider adding in minerals such as sodium or potassium to help you get through your fast! If you are looking to learn more about intermittent fasting and pickup some tips on how to make your fasts more effective, checkout my videos on my youtube channel called Fundamental Health! Here is my most popular video explaining 5 ways to make fasting easier! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRGP5VumrNg&t=144s