Is Fasting Good For You? 8 Health Benefits of Fasting

Fasting is a way to abstain from eating and drinking. These are known to be practiced by religious cultures during certain events as participation and discipline. Nowadays, individuals practice abstaining from food for various lengths of time for health benefits.

Many individuals think of fasting to be unhealthy because you are limiting the consumption of daily intake needed. However, there are actually many health benefits we can gain when it comes to partaking in fasting. So if you want to know more about the health benefits of fasting, then here are the things you need to know.

Note, this is by no means a balanced overview – we’re exclusively covering the benefits. You should always thoroughly research any lifestyle or diet program. We recommend that you speak with a trained nutritionist or health professional before embarking blindly on a fast.

8 Benefits of Fasting

1. It can curb hunger

Fasting helps regulate the hormones in your body so that you understand what true hunger is. Fasting can be like a reset button- the longer you fast, the more your body can regulate itself and correct hormones. It will also help you get full quicker.

2. It reduces overall oxidative stress and inflammation in the body

Oxidative stress enhances aging and many chronic disease. Multiple studies show that fasting may enhance the body’s resistance to oxidative stress.

3. Improves insulin sensitivity and lowering risk of type 2 diabetes

Fasting has shown to have a positive effect on insulin resistance, enabling you to tolerate carbs better than normal. Fasting has been shown to have crucial benefits for insulin sensitivity and can lead to a reduction in blood sugar levels.

4. Improves brain function and mental clarity

Fasting has shown to improve brain performance because it boosts a protein called BDNF – brain derived neurotrophic factor. BNDF activates the brain stem cells to convert into new neurons and stimulates other chemicals that promote neural health. Studies have also shown that it can increase the growth of new nerve cells, which could have benefits of brain functions.

5. Helps improve eating patterns

With today’s food abundances, people have developed multiple eating disorders such as binge eating. Fasting all day and eating at a set time and allow yourself to eat appropriately.

6. Improves blood fat levels

Research shown in the year 1997, the Annals of Nutrition Metabolism demonstrated that fasting lowered bad cholesterol, LDL, by 8 percent, triglycerides by 30%, and increase good cholesterol, HDL, by 14%. Fasting may be the perfect time to reprogram your body to get to eating healthy.

7. Improves cardio health

We all know that heart disease is a worldwide killer. Fasting has shown to improve countless risk factors, such as blood pressure, LDL and total cholesterol, blood triglycerides and more.

8. It may help you live longer

Studies have shown how the lifespan of people in certain cultures increased due to their diets. In some cases, studies in rats have shown that fasting extends their lifespan. In other studies, rats who have fasted lived 83% longer than rats who haven’t fasted.