There are lots of controversies associated with fasting, especially when it comes to weight loss. While some researchers argue that fasting can help with weight loss and it is a good way to detoxify the body, there are other researchers who opine that fasting causes more harm than good. A gerontologist from the University of Southern California named Valter Longo whose main area of research in fasting, says that fasting is one of the worst habits and people with eating disorders should avoid it at any cost.
Other Opinions on fasting
Derek Henry, a holistic coach of the popular site, “Healing the Body” says that you can send your body for a loop if you suddenly switch from unclean eating habits to extreme detox diets. Though both experts are not totally against fasting, they advise that the individual must gradually take it up and take the help of a family member or a friend and avoid the sugar and carb cravings as much as possible. There must be a gradual change in the lifestyle as sudden or drastic change can be difficult to deal with.
The health experts from the University of Manchester conducted a new study on fasting and found out that the 5:2 approach is the most ideal one. This approach is basically eating normally for five days a week and then fasting for two days with a maximum of 18 hours before you break the fast. People are still allowed to eat during the two days and it is regarded as a mini fast as people are not allowed to eat more than 600 calories. This mini fasting is found to be more beneficial than the actual fasting.
Loss of body fat, improved memory and immunity during fasting
Another group of scientists ultimately found out that an overweight woman who followed this 5:2 plan lost more weight and body fat along with improving insulin resistance when compared to the women who limited their calorie intake on all 7 days. There was a considerable difference in the results obtained from the 2 women and the woman who did the mini fast clearly had a more positive result. There are a lot more health benefits of fasting this way. It also regulates blood pressure and improves heart health.
A lot of experts believe that this method is ideal and has lots of health benefits. Another researcher named Mark Mattson from the National Institute of Aging says that there are plenty of benefits from fasting. He also believes that by fasting or going without eating, the body tends to use up the stored glucose molecules which in turn melt the fat. He also says that fasting has multiple health benefits and not just weight loss, but this dietary lifestyle change can also improve the memory significantly. Though this aspect is still under research, Mark is enthusiastic to learn more about the positive aspects brought about by fasting.
Some other researchers and health experts advocate fasting as they believe that eating many meals in a day can account for abnormal eating and is simply not natural. In fact, there are several articles that have been published in health magazines and journals that support this theory. This is because the most common eating pattern followed by the people is 3 full meals a day along with 2 snacks to make a total of 5 meals which is quite unhealthy and abnormal in true sense.
Therefore the idea of mini fasting seems to be more convenient to the people as they don’t have to quit eating for an entire day altogether. The health benefits of fasting are surely controversial, but it’ quite safe to try the mini fasting strategy as it can really improve the digestive system and help to get rid of calories easily. To get rid of all these confusions, just understand your body make and know what does our body needs. When you are healthy and hale, only then weight loss is possible.
source:http://www.healthydietaffair.com
No comments:
Post a Comment