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EPI| Lifestyle is a scientific event designed for medical professionals who learn about various innovations that optimize cardiovascular health parameters in patients. The event propagates a holistic approach to patient care by considering numerous social determinants influencing health outcomes and implementing the parameters into clinical research and practice. “Association Between Time-Restricted Eating and All-Cause and Cause-Specific Mortality,” was one of the many findings of the 2024 event. Many studies have proved that obesity is one of the driving factors for high rates of cardiovascular diseases worldwide. To curb excess weight, many individuals resort to intermittent fasting without having adequate knowledge about fasting and the healthy dietary needs of the body. In doing so, patients often end up depriving their bodies of essential nutrients. Even modest improvements in your daily diet are likely to exert significant damage to your body. Food is the ultimate medicine for the body. Even if your body requires some amount of dietary control and small intervals of intermittent fasting, you still need to consult an expert for sound advice on the same. With a minuscule understanding of how fasting and diet work on your body, you might be unknowingly pushing yourself to the verge of a severe cardiac arrest.
Let’s dive deep into the facts and scientific results of fasting and a weight control diet that will work as a nectar for sound health, not a deadly poison.
Fasting doesn’t mean starving yourself to death. And it is not detrimental to health. In fact, it can be seen as one of the many ways to detoxify your body. Fasting is very much embedded in our culture, especially for religious purposes; individuals often fast for extended periods. Religious fasting has been connected to healthy benefits such as lowering body mass and decreasing total cholesterol levels. Usually, such fasts are broken with a healthy diet of fruits and vegetables. However, intermittent fasting for weight loss follows a less profitable path for the human body. It is an eating plan that includes specific periods of fasting and eating as a daily routine. It doesn’t focus on what you eat; rather, when to eat.
Based on certain findings that show human bodies have evolved to continue functioning without several hours or days of eating, this type of fasting has come into vogue. It is not entirely harmful. In fact, intermittent fasting can reverse the modern-day trends of bingeing on extra calories with minimal physical activity, often leading to obesity, type 2 diabetes, chronic heart disease, and other illnesses. It prolongs the period for your body to burn all the calories consumed during your last meal and pushes your body to start using body fat for fuel. This ultimately helps reduce your body fat over time and boosts your immune system.
Any sudden change in your daily routine is bound to show some immediate results. It has been deemed that intermittent fasting not only has an instant effect on your body weight, but also impacts the body metabolism and the brain. Some scientific journals have revealed a range of benefits associated with this practice, such as a longer life, a leaner body, a sharper mind, and many more.
As per certain studies, a few such advantages are listed below:
1. Thinking and Memory: Fasting enhances working memory in animals and verbal memory in adults.
2. Heart Health: Intermittent fasting improves blood pressure, resting heart rates, and other heart-related metrics.
3. Physical Performance: Young men fasting for 16 hours lose fat while maintaining muscle mass; mice on alternate-day feeding show better-running endurance.
4. Tissue Health: Intermittent fasting reduces tissue damage during surgery and improves outcomes in animals.
5. Obesity: It prevents obesity and promotes weight loss in obese adults.
6. Type 2 Diabetes: Besides reducing body weight, fasting helps curb blood glucose and leptin levels while decreasing insulin resistance and increasing adiponectin levels.
Intermittent fasting, however, has some severe long-term side effects that vary widely depending on an individual’s overall health and their choice of fasting regimen and dietary intake. That’s why the precautionary tale of consulting a healthcare professional before initiating some dramatic changes to your health and fitness plan.
On that note, here are a few examples of the side effects of intermittent fasting as per scientific findings.
1. Nutrient Deficiencies: Prolonged fasting periods may cause essential vitamins and mineral deficiencies if not carefully managed.
2. Muscle Loss: Extended fasting can cause muscle loss because your body lacks protein.
3. Disordered Eating: There are high chances of individuals leaning towards binge eating during feeding windows. This may result in disordered eating patterns.
4. Hormonal Imbalances: Long-term fasting may affect hormone levels, particularly in women, potentially disrupting menstrual cycles and fertility.
5. Metabolic Changes: Intermittent fasting can alter metabolism, potentially leading to a decreased metabolic rate over time.
6. Increased Stress Levels: Extended fasting periods increase cortisol levels. As a result, you end up with increased stress and anxiety.
7. Digestive Issues: Irregular eating patterns might cause digestive problems, such as constipation or bloating.
8. Bone Health: There is a potential risk for decreased bone density over the long term due to possible reduced intake of calcium and other nutrients essential for bone health.
Traditional calorie-restricted diets, balanced macronutrient plans, and mindful eating practices are some of the best alternatives to intermittent fasting. Each of these diet-control for weight loss plans is attuned to individual needs and preferences, usually structured under the expert guidance of a healthcare professional or a registered dietitian. The latter can help you to choose the most suitable and sustainable option for weight loss and overall health improvement.
Here are a few ways how such alternative diet control plans impact your health:
As the name suggests, calorie-restricted diets reduce the total caloric intake without compromising on essential nutrients required by your body.
Impact on Health
A balanced diet plan balances the intake of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats in appropriate ratios.
Impact on Health
Mindful eating implies giving full attention to hunger and satiety cues and choosing nutritious foods to comply with your hunger pangs.
Impact on Health
Here, the focus is more on diets that check carbohydrate intake while increasing fat intake. This leads to a state of ketosis.
Impact on Health
Here, the emphasis is more on a higher intake of protein to promote satiety and muscle maintenance.
Impact on Health
Unofficially termed a ‘cardiac diet,’ this eating plan emphasizes less intermittent fasting and more on food that promotes sound heart health. Fasting for a brief period might not work well if it is complemented by a period of binge eating. By opting for a properly planned diet chart, you can witness positive changes in your body while intermittently fasting. This ensures your body is not deprived of essential nutrients.
A heart-healthy diet focuses on foods that support overall heart health and well-being, ensuring the risk of heart disease is minimized. Adopting a heart-healthy diet is a sustainable way to improve cardiovascular health and overall well-being. A healthcare dietitian can help customize a diet plan for you attuned to your specific needs and health conditions.
The key features of a heart-healthy eating pattern include:
Benefits of a Heart-Healthy Diet
Intermittent fasting is popular as an effective strategy for achieving a heart-healthy eating pattern. By opting for specific periods of fasting followed by eating in between, you can regulate calorie intake, reduce inflammation, and improve heart health.
To incorporate intermittent fasting into your lifestyle:
By adopting intermittent fasting alongside a balanced diet, you can support your cardiovascular health and overall well-being.
Incorporating intermittent fasting into a heart-healthy eating pattern can be a powerful approach to maintaining sound heart health. By aligning eating schedules with the body’s natural rhythms, intermittent fasting helps regulate calorie intake, improve metabolic health, and reduce inflammation. Combine intermittent fasting with a balanced diet to witness a significant change in your cardiovascular health. It is important to stay hydrated and pay attention to hunger cues to prevent overeating. Overall, intermittent fasting, when practiced mindfully and consistently, can promote a healthy heart and improve overall well-being.
Intermittent fasting is an eating pattern that cycles between periods of fasting and eating, without specific dietary restrictions on the foods consumed. Popular methods include the 16/8 method, where one fasts for 16 hours and eats during an 8-hour window.
Intermittent fasting may help with weight loss by reducing calorie intake and boosting metabolism. It also shows potential benefits for insulin sensitivity, heart health, and brain function.
During intermittent fasting, muscle loss can be minimized by maintaining protein intake, engaging in resistance training, and ensuring adequate overall calorie intake during eating windows. However, prolonged fasting without proper nutrition may lead to muscle loss over time.
Intermittent fasting can be sustainable for weight loss due to its flexibility in meal timing, potential appetite regulation benefits, and simplicity compared to strict calorie-counting diets. However, individual adherence and long-term success vary.
Common side effects when starting intermittent fasting may include hunger, irritability, headaches, fatigue, and difficulty concentrating, which typically improve as the body adjusts to the new eating pattern.
Intermittent fasting may not be suitable for everyone, especially those with medical conditions like diabetes, eating disorders, or pregnant/nursing women. Consulting with a healthcare provider before starting is advisable to ensure safety and suitability.
During intermittent fasting, it’s advisable to drink water, herbal teas, and black coffee without sugar or cream, as they are low in calories and generally do not break the fast.
Higher BMI (Body Mass Index) is associated with increased risks of chronic conditions like heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, and certain cancers, due to excess body fat accumulation.
Intermittent fasting may exacerbate conditions like diabetes if not managed carefully, as fasting can affect blood sugar levels. It may also impact individuals with eating disorders or certain medical conditions adversely. Consulting a healthcare professional is recommended before starting.
Intermittent fasting may not be suitable if you experience extreme hunger, irritability, fatigue, dizziness, or difficulty concentrating during fasting periods, or if you have a history of eating disorders, diabetes, or other medical conditions.
Manoja. K is a Post Graduate in Organic Chemistry and has a BSc degree in Clinical Nutrition and Dietetics (Osmania university). She has over 8 years of experience in diet planning, nutrition, and fitness. Her expertise lies in health-related issues such as weight management, PCOD, thyroid, obesity, and stress. She is the chief adviser and full-time contributor at Fit Indian and has the final say on all the segments under the Fit Indian paradigm. She firmly believes that “Good health is a choice”, she believes that a day must begin with nutritious food and fitness activity that helps you beat stress and make life easier. We are not just all about fitness plans; you can also get customized diet plans and healthy cooking tips here! Book a consultation now!
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