At New Life Cosmetic Surgery and Wellness Center we just don’t focus on surgery but also want patients to feel great on their inside. This occurs through hormone optimization, exercise, sleep and eating well. In this blog, I want to talk about intermittent fasting as a way to lose weight as well to improve you overall health.
Intermittent fasting (IF) has become very popular over the last few years. A lot more research has shown the benefits of this model of eating. Not only are my patients talking about how they have lost weight, I personally have seen a tremendous improvement in my mental focus and stamina throughout the day. The most popular time restriction for intermittent fasting is a 16 hour period of fasting during the day. It’s important to still drink plenty of water during this time. Most commonly the fasting is done from 10am to 6pm or 12pm to 8pm and then 16 hours of not eating or drinking any food with carbs or calories. Many nutritionists will recommend for this to be done 2-3 times per week. If you can do 18 hours of fasting there can even be stronger effects.
Let’s go over some of the benefits of intermittent fasting.
1. Digestive health- The normal transit time for food throughout the body, from the time you eat until It’s eliminated as waste is 53 hours. The process of eliminating food is slowed down while we eat. Thus the more frequent you eat, the slower it will take for food to be eliminated from you body. Which means more inflammation in the gut.
2. Weight loss– Fasting leads to weight loss by decreasing insulin levels. If insulin levels are elevated then more fat is stored. If insulin levels are low then less fat is stored and the body burns fat for energy. Secondly, fasting causes cells to make new mitochondria. Mitochondria help take carbs and burn them for energy.
3. Type 2 diabetes– I have seen patients no longer need their diabetes medication after adopting intermittent fasting. This is also backed up by multiple studies that show the benefits of IF for the lowering blood sugar levels and decreasing insulin resistance.
4. Cognitive health– Intermittent fasting regulates blood sugar and lowers insulin. Some scientist believe that abnormal glucose signaling is responsible for 60% of cognitive decline. This is one keyway IF can help protect against neurodegenerative disease. Another way is that IF promotes “autophagy.” Autophagy is the process of the body getting rid of dysfunctional cells. The buildup of dysfunctional cells can lead to inflammation which increases risk of neurodegenerative disease.
Now that you see some of the benefits of IF. How can you practically implement the dietary plan into your life? Here is one simple way. Start out the first week going 12 hours without eating. Simply from 8pm to 8am. The following week go 16 hours without eating, from 8pm to 12pm the following day. Make sure you drink plenty of water in the morning up through lunch time. Then the following week go 18 hours without eating. Start again fasting at 8pm and eat at 2pm the next day. If you are working then snack on some almonds or a protein bar at 2pm then when you come home have dinner. You will be hungry at dinner! You actually will end up desiring to eat a meal that has plenty of protein and healthy fats. Your body will feel bloated if you eat a lot of carbs and processed food. Then on the weekends eat regularly with your family and enjoy healthy meals with them. Please let us know how your experience goes with intermittent fasting. Most of our patients have found it to be very helpful.