8 proven benefits of fasting

1 – It stimulates fat burning which often helps you lose some pounds

When you fast, your body produces less insulin. The body will then look for the necessary energy elsewhere, such as the fat reserves that are already stored in your body. Burning these fat reserves will also releases ketones.

2 – Fasting reduces the risk of obesity, cardiovascular disease and it lowers cholesterol and blood pressure

Because your body produces less insulin, your insulin resistance also decreases. This is many cases a major cause of obesity and cardiovascular diseases. By fasting you will reduce the risk of getting these diseases. Also, regular fasting helps to improve cholesterol levels and lower your blood pressure.

3 – Fasting triggers autophagy: cleaning up and repairing damaged cells

Our cells “sense” when there is less food coming in and they adapt accordingly. They become more preserving with energy, stop growing and multiplying, and start investing more in maintenance and repair. They protect themselves from damage and start using waste products in the cell as fuel (“autophagy”). They “clean themselves up”; the process of cleaning up and repairing is enhanced. Studies show that after about 72 hours you have achieved a total reset of the immune system.

4 – Improve your intestinal flora

Bad bacteria die off faster with fasting, giving healthy bacteria a chance to grow. These bacteria play such a big role in metabolism, food digestion and your immune system that this can prevent complaints when the healthy bacteria replace the bad ones. For example, irritable bowel, bloating and abdominal pain can be reduced.

5 – Fasting protects and supports your brain from brain diseases

Through fasting and taking in fewer calories, you protect your brain from genetic and environmental factors that would normally cause deterioration of the nervous system. This can help prevent diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s. Fasting also supports your overall brain function, stimulates the production of new neurons and keeps existing neurons healthy for longer.

6 – Fasting helps to fight Diabetes Type 2

The body becomes more sensitive to insulin as blood glucose and insulin, among other things, decrease. This reduces the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. If you already have type 2 diabetes, fasting can also ensure that this is completely reversed so that medication use can be reduced and sometimes even stopped.

7 – Fasting supports cancer therapy

When a patient fasts during their cancer treatment, healthy cells are protected and cancer cells are not when the chemotherapy takes place. This ensures that patients experience significantly fewer side effects like fatigue and gastrointestinal problems from this treatment than people who do not fast. Often they also need less medication to combat these problems.

8 – Fasting = living a longer life

Due to the increase in autophagy (damaged cells break down faster and other cells are repaired), promoting your health. Also, the changes in IGF-1 (Insulin Growth Factor), helps fight aging. This substance causes growth in almost all cells in our body. Although we need it when we are young, this growth can accelerate aging when we are older.