Intermittent fasting or interval fasting is a new trend among dietary habits and diets. This article aims to shed light on what intermittent fasting is, how it works and what it brings to the human organism.
What is interval fasting?
The word “intermittere” comes from Latin and means to suspend or interrupt. As the name implies, intermittent fasting means fasting in phases. Food is only allowed at certain times or on certain days. The rest of the time, the body fasts. Intermittent fasting is nothing unusual, because it is the dietary rhythm of our ancestors. Our ancestors were accustomed to fasting for a long time after each meal. Constant eating is a phenomenon of modern times and our affluent society. And it has been proven to lead to diseases of the cardiovascular system and other degenerative diseases. Thus, intermittent fasting can protect the body and improve health. Because fasting days relieve the whole organism.
How does intermittent fasting work?
As long as the human body is busy digesting food, this is its highest priority. All other tasks are put on the back burner. As long as food is in the gastrointestinal tract, the body does not have time to do other important tasks. One of these tasks is autophagy. In this process, the body destroys damaged and unusable cells and cell parts. It cleans up internally. If it does not do this, sooner or later this can lead to cancer or other diseases such as diabetes or cardiovascular diseases. However, autophagy only takes place in the body when the body is not busy with digestion, but instead extracts energy from its own cells. With intermittent fasting, the body benefits from the advantages of fasting without going completely without food for a long period of time. The rhythm of part-time fasting forces the body to tap into its energy reserves. In the long term, this has a positive effect on the whole body.
The four most common variants
Intermittent fasting comes in a number of different variations. This article presents the most common four methods: The 16:8 method, the 36:12 method, the 20:4 method, and the 5:2 method. The 16:8 method:
This method, also known as Leangains, involves fasting for 16 hours a day. In the eight remaining hours, it is allowed to eat. This method is especially suitable for people who do not eat breakfast at home. This is because this method recommends skipping breakfast and eating only lunch and dinner. For example, if you are at lunch at 12 o’clock, you must have eaten dinner at 8 o’clock at the latest. This makes the method socially acceptable. After all, there is nothing to prevent a meal with friends, colleagues or family. If you know that dinner will be later, all you have to do is postpone lunch a little. The 20:4 method:
This method also became known as “The Warrior Diet.” It also divides the day into a window for meals and a fasting period. During a 4-hour window, eating is allowed. During the remaining 20 hours, fasting is done. The 4-hour window makes the method harder than the 16:8 variety. The time window in which eating is allowed can be chosen arbitrarily. However, it has proven effective to place it in the early evening hours. The 18:6 method:
As an alternative and compromise between the 16:8 and the 20:4 method, the 18:6 method can be used. Here in time windows of 6 hours can be eaten and 18 hours is fasted. For example it offers itself to do without the breakfast and to eat only starting from 12 o’clock noon and then shortly before 18 o’clock the supper. Interested parties of intermittent fasting should try all methods once and implement and permanently maintain for themselves the version that can be used best in everyday life. The 36:12 method:
In the 36:12 method or Alternate Day Fasting (ADF), both the fasting and eating cycles lengthen. Twelve hours of eating is allowed, followed by 36 hours of fasting. Specifically, this means: On Day 1, eating is allowed from 9 am to 9 pm. The recommendation is to eat on this day of meals. However, the next meal is not allowed until the day after next at 9 am. Eat-Stop-Eat Method:
The Eat-Stop-Eat method again follows a different concept.Eating is allowed for 24 hours, followed by 24 hours of fasting. On the non-fasting days, high-quality and especially protein-rich foods should be consumed. However, it is not intended to change every day. Rather, it is recommended to have one or two fasting days per week. On the other days – as with all methods – attention should be paid to a healthy and varied diet. The 5 to 2 diet:
In this method, it is allowed to eat normally on five days per week. On the remaining two days, the calorie intake is reduced to 25 percent of the usual requirement. For men, this is about 600 calories, and for women, about 500 calories. The fasting days can be freely chosen within the week. However, the two days should not be consecutive. As with the Eat-Stop-Eat method, it is recommended to consume foods with a high proportion of protein and fiber on the fasting days.
The advantages and disadvantages
Without a doubt, interval fasting requires discipline and planning. This is because, especially in the beginning, the body is not adjusted to fasting and will fight back with intense hunger and bad mood. This is nothing unusual and is part of the changeover. Who brings up discipline and does not yield to the hunger feeling, however, is rewarded later. Good planning is also important in order to be able to participate in social meals. In addition it does not come with the partial time chamfering to the notorious chamfering crisis, which gives it with complete chamfering cures. Those with discipline and planning can reap the many benefits of Intermittent Fasting.
| Benefit 1: Intermittent fasting regulates high blood pressure. Too high blood pressure is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and heart attacks. Therefore, it is important to lower too high blood pressure. Intermittent fasting has proven effective for this purpose and helps to lower blood pressure to a healthy level. Advantage 2: Intermittent fasting lowers blood sugar levels. Too high blood sugar level can sooner or later lead to diabetes with enormous consequential damages. Blood sugar fluctuations and spikes have also been shown to be involved in depression, skin diseases, hormone disorders or cancer. Intermittent fasting counteracts this effect. This is because fasting and abstaining from or reducing sugar intake has a positive effect on blood sugar levels. This helps to lose weight in the short term and protects against many diseases in the long term. Advantage 3: Intermittent fasting regulates cholesterol levels. Too high a cholesterol level is also a risk for cardiovascular diseases. Interval fasting can favorably influence the various cholesterol levels. Thus the harmful LDL cholesterol sinks and the positively acting HDL cholesterol rises. Overall, the quotient of the two values improves, which is positive for health. (see also: Increased cholesterol level (hypercholesterolemia) Advantage 4: Intermittent fasting protects against diseases of the nervous system. Fasting has a positive effect not only on the cardiovascular system, but also on the nervous system. Low blood sugar and insulin levels promote the formation of antioxidants and protective proteins. Both factors help cells to be better protected against oxidative stress. In addition, intermittent fasting promotes the release of neurotrophic factors, which are immensely important for the health of nerve cells. In the long term, this reduces the risk of degenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease or Alzheimer’s disease. Advantage 5: Intermittent fasting helps to lose weight in the long term and thus protects against secondary diseases. All in all, the phased abstention from food helps to lose weight. And that protects against numerous diseases of the whole body. |
Who is intermittent fasting suitable for?
Intermittent fasting is suitable for many people. It is easier to follow through than a classic diet, because many things are allowed during the food phases. Athletes can also combine their activity with the methods. It has been proven to put the workout, at the end of the fasting phase and then eat. However, there are some groups that should avoid interval fasting. These include children, pregnant women, nursing mothers and people suffering from an eating disorder. People taking medication for high blood pressure or low blood pressure, as well as diabetics and people suffering from migraines, should talk to their doctor in advance. It is possible that fasting has a positive effect on the disease and the dose of medication can be adjusted downwards.However, this must be monitored and clarified by a doctor.
What is allowed to eat during fasting and what not?
During fasting periods, food must be completely avoided. To balance the fluid balance, water, unsweetened coffee and coffee (without milk) are allowed. Drinks with sugar and sweeteners are not allowed. These include soft drinks, but also juices. These drinks would stimulate the release of insulin in the body and would therefore be counterproductive. The eating phase should not be used to consume empty calories in masses. Eating should be as healthy and varied as possible. The so-called “power foods”, which provide particularly many good ingredients, are to be preferred. These include avocados, nuts or berries. Foods such as vegetables, fruits and raw vegetables or grainy fresh cheese are also recommended. In addition, it is not advisable to overeat and “stuff” yourself with food during the eating phase. This makes the body sluggish and puts a strain on it even during the fasting period. A diet rich in fiber and protein supports the effect of fasting. Foods high in fat and carbohydrates should be reduced.
It is crucial to abstain from sugar!
Those who choose intermittent fasting should eliminate sugar and other short-chain carbohydrates from their diet. Industrially processed foods with added sugar should also disappear from the menu. These include classic sweets, such as chocolate and cookies, baked goods, but also convenience foods. Sugar sets the insulin metabolism in motion and causes people to feel hungry again soon after eating. As long as insulin is in the blood, fat goes straight into the body’s fat stores and is not burned off. So cutting out sugar boosts fat metabolism, because the body is forced to obtain energy from fat. Because if the amount of insulin in the blood drops, the body sends hunger signals. That’s why Intermittent Fasting can be perfectly combined with approaches such as “Clean Eating” or the [[Paleo Diet: How to get started with Stone Age Nutrition|Paleo Nutrition||. These diets reduce empty carbohydrates (e.g., pasta, rice, white bread) and focus on products such as vegetables or high-quality meats.