The Benefits of Fasting
A Deep Dive into the Nuances of Fasting for Health and Weight Loss
I find that when I recommend water fasting to patients it is often met with, “I’ll think about it". Most people can get on board with intermittent fasting but one, two, three, four, or five days with only water brings up a lot of trepidation for people. No judgement, I understand.
If diet, nutrition, water, and rest are our number one resource for promoting health, then fasting is our number two. It is maybe the most important tool we have at our disposal to promote healing.
Fasting can get us out of A LOT of messes, especially if we incorporate it as a part of our lifestyle. I recently came across a brilliant book, called “Fast Like a Girl” by Dr Mindy Pelz. This book has a focus on weight loss and healing through what she calls “metabolic switching”. I will explain more later but for now, let’s start with the nuances of fasting and how it effects our cells and organs.
What does fasting do for us?
1. INCREASES KETONES. Ketones are made after 8 hours without food and build from there.
Ketones are made by the liver when the body is low on glucose.
Ketones are reparative, especially to nervous tissue, such as the tissue found in the brain.
Ketones feed the mitochondria to increase energy production.
Ketones turn off the release of hunger hormones in the hypothalamus.
Ketones trigger the release of the calming hormone-GABA.
2. INCREASES AUTOPHAGY. Autophagy begins to turn on around 17 hours without food and hits its full stride at around 72 hours.
Without glucose from food intake, the cells kick in to increase cell resilience through detoxification, repair and removal of diseased cells, allowing a deep cellular cleaning, called “autophagy".
Autophagy primes the immune system. If a virus enters a cell that is in a state of autophagy, it will lose its ability to replicate. Viruses do not have their own energy factories, they use the hosts resources to fuel replication. If we don’t give them fuel, they lose the ability to replicate. If we fast in the presence of a virus, we will cut off its fuel source.
Autophagy down regulates cognitive decline and increases mental clarity and focus.
Autophagy increases sex hormone production and balances hormones (autophagy-focused fasting 1-2 times a week is very supportive for perimenopause, infertility and PCOS) *
3. SUPPORTS MICROBIOME AND GUT REPAIR. After 24 hours of fasting, an influx of stem cells are released into the gut and start to repair the lining of the intestines.
The stem cells will find deficient cells and infuse them with new life, helping to heal leaky gut.
The healthy gut microbes are strengthened by autophagy to make up for things like antibiotic use and birth control pills.
24+ hour fasting can help heal from SIBO, as it stops nutrient supply to the bacteria that are not supposed to be in the small intestine to stop them from replicating.
4. FAT BURNING. After 36 hours of fasting, a switch turns on to stimulate fat burning **. This is the most exciting reveal in the book listed below. It is not uncommon for a peri or post-menopausal woman to show up saying she is only eating one meal a day or is eating in an 8 hour eating window and still hasn’t lost a pound.
Fat burning fasts of 36+ hours decrease weight loss resistance by resetting the metabolic sensitivity.
Cholesterol levels decrease as the liver is able to release inflammatory toxins, fats and sugars. If liver enzymes increase on a low carbohydrate, high fat diet it is a clue that the liver is congested and will benefit from fasting.
Glucose is stored in the liver, muscles and fat. Fasting allows those excess sugars to be released which may be a prerequisite for a woman to lose weight.
5. RESETS DOPAMINE. After 48 hours there is repair at the dopamine receptor sites, creation of new dopamine receptors and improvements of dopamine pathways with increased sensitivity.***
Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that is largely responsible for the experience of joy.
A 48-hour fast also helps the brain to making the neurotransmitter GABA and to stimulate the prefrontal cortex which contributes to a decrease in anxiety.
6. RESETS THE IMMUNE SYSTEM. After 72 hours we have all of the benefits of the above listed fasting times and add the benefit of regeneration of stem cells which helps to heal cells and organs in the body and to have a dramatic affect on the aging process.
We want to focus on 3-5 day water fasts to reverse chronic disease.
More than 72 hours of fasting supports the body in healing from injuries and surgeries.
After 72 hours we begin to see a slowing down and even reversal of some of the effects of aging.
The Key to Women’s Weight Loss: ”Metabolic Switching"
Metabolic switching refers to moving back and forth between a body that relies on glucose to power its cells and ketones.
The fasting periods with the benefits of ketones and autophagy, helps the cells and organs to release excess sugar and toxins and then when we eat healthful food, we provide the necessary nutrients for the rebuilding of healthy strong cells, organs and muscles.
When we utilize metabolic switching, it creates a type of stress on the body that nudges the stem cells into action. Mitochondria are revitalized. (When we feel tired after eating, it indicates sick mitochondria which are unhealthy and inefficient at using glucose.) This revitalization helps us to slow down or turn back the effects of aging.
Metabolic switching also helps to regenerate the brain, detoxifying the neurons from toxins and helps to grow new neurons.
If you have never fasted, you can slowly work up to a fast by pushing back the time you eat breakfast by an hour every few days until you find yourself comfortable with a 17 hour fasting window. This will start the body into autophagy and over time you will find yourself able to do longer and longer fasts with less hunger and less symptoms of detoxification.
You can work with detoxification symptoms by increasing water intake, castor oil packs, coffee enemas, regular enemas, epsom salt baths, dry skin brushing, etc. See our website or ask for resources if you are unfamiliar with these treatments.
Dr. Mindy offers very specific recommendations for menstruating women, about when in the cycle to fast to support balanced hormones and/or weight loss. If you are interested in fasting and are a menstruating woman, watch her videos or purchase her book.
If you are pregnant, have diabetes or a serious illness, please consult your doctor before embarking on a fasting adventure.
I hope this article has piqued your interest in fasting!
Yours in good health,
Dr Ajana Miki
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* “Fast Like a Girl” by Mindy Pelz, DC, pg 33.
** “, p 35
*** “, p.37