intermittent fasting anyone

[Globetrotter]

I’ve read that any amount over 12 gives some benefits, though most don’t experience weight loss until 18 hours.

[baymom]

It's so great to hear how much IF is taking off! I joined DDD on FB around April last year and have found the group to be so supportive and encouraging. Honestly, anyone just starting off should definitely consider joining.

I was never in the habit of eating breakfast, so fasting wasn't that much of a jump for me. But, I've learned the importance of a 'clean' fast and the role of insulin. It was a challenge to swap out my coffee with milk to black coffee--but it's made all the difference, so I'm convinced! I typically fast 19-20 hours, but have done a handful of 42 hours. For me, the most astonishing thing has been experiencing 'appetite correction' and realizing that I'm not hungry. All these years, I guess I'd been eating because it was the expected thing to do, not listening to my own hunger signals. I'm not tempted to have a taste of something just because, I'm able to pause and consider if I actually *want* to experience the taste of that item. I was never like this before!

I've only lost about 10 pounds and I'd like to loose 10 more, but I'm not in a rush now. My clothes are all much looser, I am sleeping much better, have more energy and just feel great. In DDD lingo, those are "NSV" (non scale victories). Now, if only I could convince DH to start this lifestyle...

[westwoodmom04]

Is there medical literature supporting fasting 18 hours or more on a regular basis? Because at some point, fasting for the vast majority of every day on a regular basis goes from beneficial to an eating disorder.

[Globetrotter]

Worth reading:
https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMra1905136

[Globetrotter]

Baymom, I’m grateful that you introduced me to DDD!
PP, it goes against everything we’ve been taught, but I now have a healthier relationship with food, and when I eat, I eat plenty.

[westwoodmom04]

Worth reading:
https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMra1905136

Unfortunately behind a pay wall. I don't have a problem with the basic premise, although it appears to have been tested very little in humans in a peer-review setting. Six hours is a pretty small window to eat, but there seems to be an attitude among some of these diet groups, that the shorter the period the better, and I think, a real danger of crossing over from a healthy fast to an unhealthy one.

[Globetrotter]

I had to create an account and was able to read it. Also Look up autophagy and Nobel prize. Autophagy occurs during the fast, once you get to that stage, and that’s where the health benefits occur.

As with Anything else, there is a safe way to do this. Extended fasts (like 48 hours and more, to increase autophagy) can be done safely but it’s important that you follow certain criteria. Fasting has historically been a big part of eastern religions, too.

[westwoodmom04]

I had to create an account and was able to read it. Also Look up autophagy and Nobel prize. Autophagy occurs during the fast, once you get to that stage, and that’s where the health benefits occur.

As with Anything else, there is a safe way to do this. Extended fasts (like 48 hours and more, to increase autophagy) can be done safely but it’s important that you follow certain criteria. Fasting has historically been a big part of eastern religions, too.

I think your missing my point. Just because a fast of y hours can be beneficial, doesn’t mean a fast of y+3 hours is. And the actual research on this is still quite sparse with humans, mostly rat models. A focus on eating in an ever smaller time window isn’t even what the research is talking about, and having known many women with eating disorders in my college days, makes me concerned.

[Kindra178]

I truly believe there are moderate benefits of fasting but I also acknowledge that when you have an eating window of 6 hours you are simply not eating as much food as you would in 12 hours. Put another way: unless you are home with nothing to do other than stuff 2000 calories in your mouth over every six hour eating period you literally just can’t eat that much in 6 hours. Your body is just full.

Re: the clean fast - there isn’t research to support - there’s research to support that under 50 calories doesn’t break your fast.

Re: historical practice, back in the day, there just wasn’t enough food around to eat three squares a day.

Westwood, I agree with you. It is bordering on food obsession and how little one can eat in a day.


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[Globetrotter]

I can understand what you’re saying, because that was my initial reaction, too. It’s not recommended for teenagers or people who have a history of eating disorders.
When done properly, it can be very beneficial. As for clean fasting, I see no reason to not do it and that’s when I started seeing results. It’s a growing field so we will be seeing more and more research as time goes on.