According to new research, intermittent or periodic fasting might be the slow and steady way to reduce your risk of both heart diseaseand type 2 diabetes. The research was presented at the annual scientific sessions at the American College of Cardiology conference in New Orleans recently.
The study itself was conducted in Salt Lake City, which has a predominately Mormon population. Two thirds of its residents are Mormons who fast at least one per month for 24 hours for religious purposes. In total, the study included 200 residents from the State of Utah.
The same researchers previously had found that those who fasted at least once per month had a lower incidence of coronary heart disease in an earlier study.
The researchers were able to replicate these initial finds and also demonstrate that fasting is associated with a lower prevalence of diabetes. In fact, fasting appeared to nearly halve the odds of developing diabetes.
In a companion study to these findings, the researchers also looked at the acute effects of fasting on blood markers for cardiovascular risk. For this part of the study, they used participants who did not routine fast. Participants did not eat or drink anything other than water for 24 hours.
During the fast, researchers found favorable effects such as an increase in HDL cholesterol and lowering of triglycerides. However, they also noted that both LDL and total cholesterol levels rose—which may be a transient finding since cholesterol levels returned to normal after the fast was over.
“It appears that the total cholesterol has gone up because the liver is not processing as much cholesterol and instead it is being dumped into the bloodstream to be used as fuel,” according to lead researcher, Benjamin Horne.
In addition to the effects of fasting on cholesterol levels, it also caused a significant rise in human growth hormone (HGH) levels. Generally speaking, HGH is involved in fat loss. Levels rose by a factor of 13 in women and 20x in men during the fast.
Horne continued, “Fasting is not a quick fix, it’s a long-term lifestyle that you integrate into your normal life and do it for the duration…”
Of course, fasting is NOT for everyone. “There are some dangers for people that are at high risk for other conditions, women who are pregnant or lactating, and young children” Horne added.
Its interesting to note that fasting has historically been a tradition in all the Abrahamic faiths. And the therapeutic value of fasting is well documented in traditional medicine.
ReplyDeleteAlso islamically, fasting is known to train the mind & body into a state of discipline, whilst giving your body a detox over the period of ramadhan
ReplyDeleteDitching the Mortons rolls for breakfast on Monday !