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973741 tn?1342342773

Intermittent Fasting

I listened to a pod cast that discussed various things including a way to lose weight and control weight.  The doctor was highly complimentary to the practice of intermittent fasting.  They talked about weight control but also that various disorders such as diabetes were reduced.  The theory for the diabetes effect is that it gives the pancreas a rest.  The suggestion was to have 12 hours a day that you do not eat (minimum . . . for some people, they go to 16 hours a day).  Thoughts?
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20817808 tn?1521562300
Do not start a lifestyle you can't keep up forever. Just a piece of advice because of my own personal experience and what I see my clients come in with. Fat loss happens when you expend more energy than you take in. When exactly you take in the food doesn't matter as how much. I wouldn't pursue this. I would start building a healthy lifestyle.
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This post is old, and when you say you have clients, be wary that if you're shopping for clients on here it's not a good site for that -- they'll just kick you off.  But assuming you're not just here posting on old posts looking for clients, what you said above isn't actually true, so if you're a real participant, I'll give my own take.  When you eat has a great deal to do with weight -- for example, eating right before going to bed will lead to weight gain.  You can also lose weight without expending any more energy if you alter your diet to one that metabolizes more slowly into stored fat.  How much you eat isn't a key, calories are also only a secondary factor.  High calorie high fat fish is hard to gain weight on, while much lower calorie white bread is easy to gain weight on.  If people expend more energy they will also need the proper fuel to do this, which might mean eating more but differently and what to eat depends very much on the particular person -- different people digest foods much differently.  So while what you say is somewhat true, it's also somewhat false, and that leads me to wonder some.  Now, if you are here just to seek clients, this won't be a long conversation, as again, this particular site is very very militant about using it to sell stuff.
1081992 tn?1389903637
IF probably has health benefits that go beyond those provided by weight loss alone. With the same calories consumed throughout the day, and the same weight loss, you wouldn't get the periods of hunger wherein the body sort of clears itself out more. That includes clearing out damaged proteins in cells, which possibly is anti-cancer.  
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1081992 tn?1389903637
Just about any weight loss regimen reverses diabetes and also improves serum lipids. The problem, of course, is that most people won't do it.

Hi carb, lo carb, doesn't matter much. There is a well known somewhat science based anti-carb Paleo named Denise Minger who not that long ago and to her credit admitted that a diet of nearly pure sucrose reverses diabetes. That's based off the rice diet creator Dr. Kempner. But it only reverses diabetes when it is highly hypocaloric, maybe at 60%.

I'd agree with Minger (and probably most researchers now also agree) that the benefit arises when the fatty acid accumulation in cells gets cleared out during a hypocaloric diet. Then the muscle cells lose insulin resistance and also the pancreatic beta cells resume more normal insulin production. It's somewhat counter-intuitive, but appears to be true nevertheless according to the outcomes evidence. The idea that beta cells get somehow tired out isn't really accepted much anymore.

If a person reduces calorie intake by using IF, that's great.



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5 Comments
Wait a minute -- diabetes, true Type 1 diabetes, is a genetic disease occurring in childhood and lasting a lifetime.  Not diet "reverses" it.  It's incurable.  if you're talking type 2 diabetes, diet causes it in many people, and it's the consumption of a lot of sugar that does it.  I'm a lot confused here that anything "reverses" diabetes, though you might get a temporary reprieve from it if you take care of yourself.
Yep, we're talking about T2DM, which is the one caused by diet and the one that is the most common and is most commonly discussed.

The term 'reversal' is used generally to describe when a person can eat normally again without undergoing postprandial hyperglycemia. People can and do reverse diabetes if they are disciplined. They can reduce and then go off of medications. What you are calling a reprieve is what most call a reversal.
https://eu.startpage.com/do/search?query=diabetes+reversal

But the reversal (or reprieve) apparently doesn't have to be temporary.

There's some debate as to whether those who've been diabetic for many, many years have permanent damage to beta cells from glycation which can't be reversed.

The term 'cure' is different and I didn't use that word. If a person goes back to overeating they will likely go right back to how they were before.

Nope, consumption of a lot of sugar is not what causes T2DM. That's exactly why I brought up the Kempner study.
I wish you'd talk to my sister-in-law.  I just can't.  She's Type 2, and needs insulin shots multiple times a day.  I don't see her much as we live on opposite sides of the country, but it's so sad to see this with a condition that, as you say, can usually be controlled through disciplined eating and exercise.  
That IS sad.  We have things we just will not be able to control and yet so much we do have some power over.  Wish your sister in law and my own family member with the same mentality would understand that.
I know what you mean, I once knew somebody who had their foot amputated  but even that didn't change them.

I happened to take somebody to their foot doctor today. Two people in the waiting room were talking, one mentioned they were diabetic. Five minutes later, having changed topic that same person was saying their mantra: "Life is short, eat dessert first".
973741 tn?1342342773
I hear what you are saying paxiled but this is more simple than that.  Example, I stopped eating or drinking anything but water at 8 last night and then didn't have anything until after 8 the next morning.  12 hours, no food or calories.  I've known people and I'm sure you have too that say they stop eating at a certain time of night.  And then don't start again until the next day.  That's really what this is about rather than the fasting we normally think of when people mention that.  The intermittent part.  This doctor was talking about how this rests the body/pancreas and that there are studies that prove it helps with things like diabetes. And that people do lose weight and control their weight.  This doc said that when they look at healthy people and their habits, this is what most naturally do.  12 hours is the minimum but that this doctor for those who are obese or who have issues such as diabetes, they try to get the hours even longer up to 16.  And the reality is, you are likely to consume less calories during that shorter eating window of the day.  

Where this comes into play for me is a long time habit of wanting something to eat later in the evening.  :>)  I've learned to have healthy snacks.  But I had been given a tip to have a cup of tea instead and did that for a while.  And overall, have gotten away from needing that little something at night.  

Anyway, it was interesting to hear it presented in the way the doctor did.  I'm going to try to stick to the 8 to 8 thing.  I'll see if it has any effect.  

But agree with the spiritual aspect and history of fasting.  In my religion we use fasting as reflection, for example.  
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3 Comments
Yeah, this is a different thing -- this isn't fasting, it's the old wisdom of not eating anything after dinner or too close to bedtime.  For those who are lucky enough to have 8 hours of sleep, well, that's 8 hours at least of fasting every day, and probably more due to the time it takes to prepare for bed and to prepare for breakfast.  This isn't fasting, it's eating discipline.
I think the reason they call it -- intermittent-- fasting is that the doctor prescribes it for specific periods of time and it can be as long as 16 hours.  They do that for those who have issues with things like diabetes that I mentioned to give the pancreas a rest and they see improvement in those people with the condition.  Weight loss is an aside.  I would use it more of the 12 hour time frame.  But yes, I have heard many people in life say they don't eat after say 7 pm at night.  Skinny people.  LOL  I grew up with a mom who believed calories didn't count if people didn't see you consume them (with a whole cheesecake missing in the morning).  So, I can be a late night snacker.   AND, when I wake up after long periods of not eating, I have that common problem of being nauseated.  Blood sugar drops and this is a normal response.  I eat to get rid of that.  My son has the same thing, so that's the downside.  You do have to take care of yourself on the other side of it so you feel good.  

Anyway, I thought it was an interesting concept for health and I guess it has ongoing studies to support medical reasons for doing it.  
I eat for two people -- the healthy me and the guy who grew up in a family where food was sacred.
Avatar universal
Fasting is an ancient way to attempt to stay healthy.  It is not a weight loss tool.  Although you can obviously lose weight by not eating, you also lose nutrients that way.  Fasting is a spiritual and cleansing technique, but those who do it historically would typically do it when not doing much of anything else -- it was a rest.  If you're still doing all the things you usually do, you'll just lose nutrients that you need to do those things, especially if you're athletically active or work in a job that requires a lot of physical exertion.  But if you have a life that allows for it, then fasting does provide a nice respite for your digestive system, allows it to clean itself out, and provides a nice spiritual time.  I do know someone who fasted one day a week to maintain her weight, but eating a good diet all the time does the same thing.  One day off won't alter your metabolism any more than one day of binging will.  But there is a reason every religion has fast days -- it can make life better and in that way can make you more likely to maintain the discipline necessary to maintain a healthy diet and to learn how this is usually done.  
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