Surprising Benefits of Fasting

Muslims do fasting, naming ‘Roja’, as their religious activities. Also, people in other religions do fasting according to their religious rule. But what about the rest of the peoples? Fasting has become increasingly popular over the years, especially among the health community. This article is for all the religious and non-religious people to let you know the benefits of fasting. 

Fasting helps weight loss

Fasting can be a safe way to lose weight as many studies have shown that intermittent fasting; fasting is controlled within a set number of hours, allows the body to burn through fat cells more effectively than just regular dieting.

Intermittent fasting allows the body to use fat as its primary source of energy instead of sugar.

Fasting improves insulin sensitivity

Fasting has shown to have a positive effect on insulin sensitivity, allowing the body to tolerate carbohydrates (sugar) better than if you didn’t fast. A study showed that after periods of fasting, insulin becomes more effective in telling cells to take up glucose from the blood.

Fasting speeds up the metabolism

Intermittent fasting gives your digestive system a rest, and this can energize your metabolism to burn through calories more efficiently. Intermittent fasts can regulate your digestion and promote healthy bowel function, thus improving your metabolic function.

Fasting promotes longevity

Believe it or not, the less you eat the longer you will live. Studies have shown how the lifespan of people in certain cultures increased due to their diets.

One of the primary effects of aging is a slower metabolism, the younger your body is, the faster and more efficient your metabolism. The less you eat, the less toll it takes on your digestive system.

Fasting improves hunger

To experience the true nature of hunger, this would take anything from 12 to even 24 hours. Fasting helps to regulate the hormones in your body so that you experience what true hunger is. We know that obese individuals do not receive the correct signals to let them know they are full due to excessive eating patterns. Think of fasting as a reset button.

Fasting improves your eating patterns

Fasting can be a helpful practice for those who suffer from binge eating disorders, and for those who find it difficult to establish a correct eating pattern due to work and other priorities.

Also, for anyone who wants to prevent binge eating, you can establish a set time where you allow yourself to eat your daily amount of calories in one sitting, and then not eat till the following day.

Fasting improves your brain function

Fasting has been shown to improve brain function because it boosts the production of a protein called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF).

BDNF activates brain stem cells to convert into new neurons and triggers numerous other chemicals that promote neural health. This protein also protects your brain cells from changes associated with Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease.

Fasting improves your immune system

Intermittent fasting improves the immune system because it reduces free radical damage, regulates inflammatory conditions in the body, and starves off cancer cell formation.

In nature, when animals get sick they stop eating and instead focus on resting. This is a primal instinct to reduce stress on their internal system so their body can fight off infection. We, humans, are the only species who look for food when we are ill, even when we do not need it.

Fasting contributes to self-enlightenment

With no food in the digestive system, this makes room for more energy in the body - the digestive is one of the most energy absorbing systems in the body.

Fasting for self-enlightenment allows us to feel better both consciously and physically. With a lighter body and a clearer mind, we become more aware and grateful for the things around us.

Fasting helps clear the skin

Fasting can help clear the skin because with the body temporarily freed from digestion, it’s able to focus its regenerative energies on other systems. Not eating anything for just one day has been shown to help the body clean up the toxins and regulate the functioning of other organs of the body like the liver, kidneys, and other parts.

Moreover, fasting has some other benefits for us. We can realize the true situation of hungry people all over the world. Also, it helps to save more food, reduce carbon, and so on. So practice fasting whether you are a religious person or not. Ultimately it has only benefits. Only one thing to keep in mind that if you have some kind of medical problem, consult with a doctor and then go for fasting.