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Westchester ChiropracticBlogUncategorizedShould You Be Fasting?
By Christopher Straface 0 Comments Uncategorized

Should You Be Fasting?

Our bodies are wired to eat as much as we can when we have access to food. This is because our ancestors did not always have food readily available to them. This ancestral makeup worked well when we did not have access to food whenever we wanted it. Our ancestors would sometimes go days without eating, depending on if they could catch an animal or find food from the ground. Because of this, our bodies are designed to go long periods of time without eating. This gives our body a chance to recover from food stress. Nowadays, we can run to the store and grab food whenever we want. The problem is our bodies still want to eat as if we will never eat again.
Due to our ancestors' scarcity of food, the body adapted to go long periods of time without eating. In these fasted states the body will primarily run off ketones (fat) instead of carbohydrates. Most people now have trouble going long periods without eating, because their bodies are so used to using carbs as the main energy source, but our bodies should be able to cycle back and forth between carbs and fats as our ancestors did.

How to Fast

Time restricted eating, intermittent fasting, 24 hour fasting, and long extended fasting are all ways to introduce fasting into your lifestyle, but everyone should start slowly. First try 8-10 hrs, then 12, then 16 and work your way up to 24 if you feel you can. See how your body responds. The first few times you try this it may be difficult until the body’s blood sugar levels normalize. A true fast consists of only water, but having a black coffee or tea in the morning is fine. Sleeping counts as part of the fast, so if you sleep for 8 hours just avoid food for the remaining hours of the fast. Fasting can be done 1 time per week or you can do shorter fasts every day. It depends on the person, so be sure to go slowly and listen to your body.

Potential Benefits

  • Improves insulin resistance and blood sugar
  • Increases longevity/slows aging
  • Aids in weight loss
  • Helps fight against neurodegenerative disorders (dementia, Parkinson’s, etc.)
  • Cleans out damaged and diseased cells in the body (prevention of cancer)
  • Reduces inflammation in the body
  • Increases growth hormone
  • Improves heart and brain health

Everyone is different; some people may not respond well to fasting and some people should not fast. If you have any questions regarding fasting or chiropractic care please give us a call at 914-346-5200 or click here to book an appointment. We look forward to your next visit in our office!

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