There are many types of fasting, and countless individuals attest to its effectiveness, including Hollywood celebrities like Hugh Jackman and Jennifer Aniston. However, researchers claim it takes longer to benefit when you starve yourself.
Fasting Takes 3 Days to Work
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been known to practice fasting. In an interview earlier this year, the politician revealed that he was into a 5:2 diet, which involves eating normally for five days and fasting for two days. Between Sunday 5 p.m. and Tuesday 5 a.m., he doesn't consume anything other than "water, tea and calorie-free drinks."
The practice is more rigorous than the 16:8 or 18:6 intermittent fasting. The practice 16:8 suggests fasting for 16 hours and eating normally within the 8-hour feasting window. The process works the same for 18:6, only that it has a longer fasting time of 18 hours and a shorter feasting window of only 6 hours.
However, a new study suggests Sunak's 36-hour fasting is insufficient. It reportedly takes at least 72 hours or three days to reap health benefits from fasting.
"Fasting, when done safely, is an effective weight loss intervention. Popular diets that incorporate fasting claim to have health benefits beyond weight loss," said Professor Claudia Langenberg.
"Our results provide evidence for the health benefits of fasting beyond weight loss, but these were only visible after three days of total caloric restriction - later than we previously thought. For the first time, we're able to see what's happening on a molecular level across the body when we fast."
After around three days of fasting, the study discovered that protein levels in various organs alter, suggesting that the body responds to the fast.
These proteins, which comprise the scaffolding that supports brain neurons, aid in the better functioning of organs.
In addition, the body modifies the type and source of energy it uses, converting fat reserves within the body from dietary glucose calories. The test participants shed an average of 5.7 kg after fasting for seven days. The participants' weight stayed the same for three days after the fasting was lifted.
Fasting Change Gut Microbiome
Another study learned that fasting affects gut microbiome and brain activity. Researchers found that intermittent fasting may interact with brain activity and the gut microbiome, a population of good bacteria in your stomach. According to the study's authors, it may be possible to identify the elements of successful dieting and sustaining a healthy weight by comprehending these connections.
The scientists postulated that alterations in the microbiome were responsible for the observed drop in activity levels in brain areas related to regulating appetite and addiction after the fasts.
The team found that reduced activity in the area of the brain connected to willpower during weight reduction was associated with several bacteria, including E. Coli. They also found that different kinds of bacteria positively correlated with higher activity in brain regions related to emotion, learning, motor inhibition, and attention.
"The gut microbiome is thought to communicate with the brain in a complex, two-directional way," said paper co-author Xiaoning Wang of the Institute of Geriatrics at the PLA General Hospital,
"The microbiome produces neurotransmitters and neurotoxins which access the brain through nerves and the blood circulation. In return, the brain controls eating behavior, while nutrients from our diet change the composition of the gut microbiome," Xiaoning added.
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