fasting Archives - Amazing Health Advances

Does Fasting Help Autoimmune Diseases?

The AHA! Team — Wed, 09 Apr 2025 05:25:27 +0000

Michael Greger M.D. FACLM via Nutrition Facts – Fasting has shown potential benefits for various autoimmune diseases, including lupus, multiple sclerosis, and mixed connective-tissue disease, though most evidence is based on individual case reports rather than large-scale studies. Various fasting regimens have been attempted for inflammatory autoimmune diseases, such as lupus, ankylosing spondylitis, chronic urticaria, mixed connective-tissue disease, glomerulonephritis, and multiple sclerosis, as well as osteoarthritis and fibromyalgia. The strongest evidence of the benefits of fasting surrounds the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis The strongest evidence of the benefits of fasting surrounds the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune joint disease, as I detailed in my previous blog post. A German study suggested benefits for osteoarthritis, too, and reported improvements in pain and joint function, but we’d really need randomized controlled studies to know for sure. The researchers despaired they only had 30 patients, but that’s 30 times more than many reports on fasting in the medical literature, which may detail only single cases. So, does fasting work for mixed connective tissue disease? One woman, for example, with a rare autoimmune disease known as mixed connective-tissue disease, which can cause all sorts of painful and distressing symptoms, was treated with steroids in an attempt to suppress her immune system. After 21 days of fasting, and off her medications, “she had no further complaints.” More importantly, her symptoms seemed to stay away, and “she remained free of medication.” So, does fasting work for mixed connective tissue disease? All we can say is that it worked at least once. A similar success story was reported with fibromyalgia. A woman with pain throughout her body, who couldn’t sustain activity and was on a lot of drugs, became “symptom-free” after a 24-day fast and remained that way at her “follow-up visit 1 month later.” However, when a modified fasting regimen was tried on dozens of individuals, the benefits seen at week 2 largely disappeared by week 12, as shown below and at 1:32 in my video Fasting for Autoimmune Diseases. What about lupus? A 45-year-old woman who had remained in pain despite taking immunosuppressive drugs was pain-free by day four of fasting and remained symptom-free for one year when her symptoms began to recur, but she wiped them out again with a second seven-day fast, “after which she had no symptoms.” Note, though, that she didn’t only fast. She water-only fasted, then followed it with a plant-based diet in an attempt to solidify the gains. On its own, a strictly plant-based diet without any animal protein has been shown to control symptoms in at least some cases. The same with sacroiliitis, a common manifestation of ankylosing spondylitis, an autoimmune arthritis that primarily affects the spine, causing back pain that can last for years. In the case of a 33-year-old man, all sorts of conventional therapies and drugs were tried, but the pain wouldn’t go away. So, the complete avoidance of animal foods was recommended, and “the complaints improved distinctly and persistently” within days—until the patient ate meat again. Once again, back on plant-based nutrition, he was off most of his drugs and almost completely free of symptoms. So, at least in this case, inflammatory pain refractory to other treatments was abolished by eating more healthfully. At least it’s worth a try! Autoimmune glomerulonephritis, where your body attacks your own kidneys, is a common manifestation of lupus. In a case series, 29 patients were fasted for 60 hours, then had only fruits and vegetables until they got better. They described such remarkable recoveries that fasting, in their opinion, “should be an essential part of treatment.” What about multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune nerve disease? Individuals with MS were randomized to a “fasting-mimicking diet”—in this case, a modified fast that started out with an 800-calorie-a-day diet of fruit, rice, or potatoes, followed by a week sipping a few hundred calories of flaxseed oil and vegetable broth, then transitioning to a plant-based Mediterranean diet. Over the next three months, they experienced a significant improvement in overall quality of life. They also tried a ketogenic diet, but that failed to offer clinically or statistically significant overall benefit, as you can see below and at 3:34 in my video. And, finally, let’s look at chronic urticaria (hives), where you get a rash of itchy weals and welts, as seen here and at 3:40 in my video. Individuals started to improve on day 3 of the fast Individuals started to improve on day 3 of the fast, and their hives completely disappeared by day 11. This is consistent with studies from Germany and Japan that evidently showed around 75 percent effectiveness for such patients with what looks like some sort of tea with sugar diet. It’s certainly worth giving fasting therapy a try, but, of course, fasting should only be done under trained medical supervision. Otherwise, you’d never know if you have some hidden underlying kidney issue that could land you in a coma, then maybe in the morgue. You have to have your kidney function and electrolytes monitored to make sure your body is up for the challenge. Water-only fasting is not a cure or treatment in the traditional sense “Despite the possible good outcomes, water-only fasting is not a cure or treatment in the traditional sense; it is simply intended to promote the body’s self-healing mechanisms.” Since fasting is unsustainable, by definition, “to maintain the results obtained by water-only fasting, it is necessary to adhere to a health-promoting lifestyle that includes a diet of minimally processed plant foods, adequate sleep, and robust physical exercise.” If you haven’t seen it yet, check out my related video Fasting for Rheumatoid Arthritis. I’ve held three webinars on fasting. All of the videos are available for free on NutritionFacts.org, but you can also get them in a digital download—as a bundle or separately. See: Intermittent Fasting Fasting for Disease Reversal Fasting and Cancer To see all of the fasting videos currently on the site, please visit our fasting topic page. Interested in more on using diet to prevent and treat autoimmune diseases? Check out the related posts below. Key Takeaways Fasting has shown potential benefits for various autoimmune diseases, including lupus, multiple sclerosis, and mixed connective-tissue disease, though most evidence is based on individual case reports rather than large-scale studies. Fasting has the strongest evidence for treating rheumatoid arthritis, with some suggestive benefits for osteoarthritis, but more robust, randomized controlled trials are needed to confirm these findings. After fasting, many individuals maintained their symptom-free state by adopting a strictly plant-based diet, suggesting the importance of long-term dietary changes in sustaining the benefits of fasting. Conditions like fibromyalgia, ankylosing spondylitis, and chronic urticaria have also shown improvement with fasting, but the effects may not be long-lasting without continued dietary management. Fasting should be done under medical supervision to monitor kidney function and electrolytes, ensuring the safety and effectiveness of the regimen, as fasting is not a traditional cure but a way to activate the body’s self-healing mechanisms. To read the original article click here.

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Does Fasting Help Rheumatoid Arthritis?

The AHA! Team — Mon, 24 Mar 2025 05:19:42 +0000

Michael Greger M.D. FACLM via Nutrition Facts – Fasting, followed by a plant-based diet, is put to the test for autoimmune inflammatory joint disease. Does Fasting Help Rheumatoid Arthritis? Alan Goldhamer is the founder of the TrueNorth Health Center in Santa Rosa, California, where 10,000 individuals have fasted for “a variety of conditions from diabetes and cardiovascular disease to autoimmune diseases.” He noted that “conditions that seemed to be tied to dietary excess tended to respond predictably to the use of fasting followed by a health-promoting diet,” which he describes as one that is “low salt, vegan, high fiber, low fat, low protein, and low sugar.” This approach offers people an option to make lifestyle changes “This approach offers people an option to make lifestyle changes, eliminate the cause of the problem, and stabilize their conditions, to the point where the medication is no longer needed.” It’s in contrast to “conventional medicine, which is more about the suppression of the symptoms associated with the disease, rather than removing the underlying mechanisms by which they are caused.” Said Dr. Goldhamer: “If you treat high blood pressure medically, they tell you, ‘You must take these drugs the rest of your life.’ If you have diabetes, they’ll tell you, ‘You’ll be on these medications the rest of your life.’ If you have autoimmune disease, like lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, ulcerative colitis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriasis, or eczema, you will be told, ‘You must be on medications the rest of your life,’ because medicine guarantees you will never recover…” “They promise you, if you follow their advice explicitly, you will be sick the rest of your life.” Preliminary data suggest that fasting may benefit “metabolic diseases, pain syndromes, hypertension [high blood pressure], chronic inflammatory diseases, atopic [allergic] diseases, and psychosomatic disorders,” but the highest level of evidence we have for the benefits of fasting are in regard to rheumatic diseases—autoimmune inflammatory joint diseases, like rheumatoid arthritis. Nearly a century ago, it was written that “diet treatment is not generally recognized by the medical profession…as one of the weapons with which to attack rheumatic conditions.” This attitude persisted until relatively recently, but a systematic review of controlled trials has since shown “a statistically and clinically significant beneficial long-term effect.” Rheumatoid arthritis has a well-known genetic component Rheumatoid arthritis has a well-known genetic component, but the concordance rate—that is, the chance that a pair of identical twins both get it when one has it—is probably less than 30 percent, despite the twins having the same genes. That leaves 70 percent to be explained by nongenetic factors. Even if we don’t know exactly what those factors are, “fasting is very similar to rebooting the hard drive in a computer. Sometimes, the computer gets corrupted, and you do not know exactly where the problem is. But if you just turn it off and reboot it, a lot of times, that corruption gets cleared out.” The evidence base started with case reports of water-only fasting followed by a plant-based diet. There were remarkable reports of years of pain and stiffness that were not only gone within a week but, more importantly, stayed gone on the healthier diet. One after another, just like that. But case reports are merely glorified anecdotes. There have been studies going back decades suggesting that “fasting may represent the most rapid and most available way of inducing relief of arthritic pain and swelling for patients who have RA,” rheumatoid arthritis, but they often failed to control for the placebo effect, which is “particularly important whenever self-reporting systems are used (reports on general well-being, pain, stiffness, tiredness, and the like)”—that is, subjective symptoms. Fasting may represent the most rapid and most available way of inducing relief of arthritic pain and swelling for patients who have RA There are objective measures, however, including lab tests of inflammation that don’t appear to be affected by placebos. As shown below and at 3:22 in my video Fasting for Rheumatoid Arthritis is what can be seen in controlled trials, starting immediately and staying down for at least a year. 10 different measures of inflammation decreased significantly after the fasting & subsequent meat- & egg-free diet Ten different measures of inflammation decreased significantly after the fasting and subsequent meat- and egg-free diet, whereas none of the parameters budged in those individuals with rheumatoid arthritis who continued to eat their regular diets. What’s more, this squelching of inflammation translated into a significant reduction in pain, morning stiffness, loss of grip strength, and the number of tender and swollen joints, as you can see below and at 3:43 in my video. Even a year after the trial had ended, those who benefited from the diet continued to benefit in terms of less pain, stiffness, and tender and swollen joints, presumably because they stuck with it, as shown here and at 4:00 in my video. During the period of fasting both inflammation and pain are reduced in RA patients “There is little doubt that during the period of fasting both inflammation and pain are reduced in RA patients,” individuals with rheumatoid arthritis. “However, after the normal diet is resumed, inflammation returns unless the fasting period is followed by a vegetarian diet…” Why might that be? It could be due to changes in the microbiome. The improvement in symptoms coincided with a “significant alteration in the intestinal flora” when patients switched from an omnivorous diet. “A diet can change intestinal flora and this may somehow be beneficial in RA,” perhaps by strengthening the gut barrier. We know fasting can decrease the leakiness of the gut in individuals with rheumatoid arthritis, but we don’t yet know what role, if any, this plays in the disease process. It could be as simple as eicosanoids, the mediators of inflammation that are formed from arachidonic acid. Arachidonic acid is a long-chain, inflammatory, omega-6 fatty acid found in animal fats. As seen below and at 5:04 in my video, the biggest contributors are chicken and eggs, which together contribute nearly half the intake of Americans. That’s also been suggested as an explanation for why those eating more plant-based appear to have better mental health; they aren’t suffering the “cascade of neuroinflammation” caused by arachidonic acid. Removing eggs, chicken, and other meats was shown to improve mood It’s also why removing eggs, chicken, and other meats was shown to improve mood in a randomized controlled trial, suggesting the arachidonic acid “may negatively impact mood state.” It may also help explain the impact of more plant-based diets on inflammatory diseases like rheumatoid arthritis. So, all of this may help explain why “maintaining a nutrient-dense, vegan diet of unrefined plant foods”—a plant-based diet—“appears to be necessary after the fast to prevent the recurrence of symptoms and inflammatory activity,” or as one popular press article put it, fasting may just be a tool to get you to radically kickstart a change in the way you eat. For more on fasting, see related posts below. This video was originally part of my Fasting for Disease Reversal webinar. If you want to see all of the videos in one place, check them out here. Stay tuned for Fasting for Autoimmune Diseases, coming up next. For more on rheumatoid arthritis, see Turmeric Curcumin and Rheumatoid Arthritis, Why Do Plant-Based Diets Help Rheumatoid Arthritis?, and Friday Favorites: Fasting for Rheumatoid Arthritis and Autoimmune Diseases. Key Takeaways Fasting, followed by a low-salt, vegan, high-fiber, low-fat, low-protein, and low-sugar diet, has been reported to help manage and even eliminate symptoms of various chronic conditions, including autoimmune diseases and cardiovascular issues. Fasting, especially when followed by a plant-based diet, has shown significant benefits in reducing inflammation and pain in patients with rheumatoid arthritis, with effects lasting even after the fasting period ends. The shift from an omnivorous to a plant-based diet may positively alter gut flora and reduce the inflammatory response, potentially due to decreased intake of arachidonic acid, a pro-inflammatory fatty acid found in animal products. The benefits of fasting and a plant-based diet in managing rheumatoid arthritis and other conditions seem to be sustained only if the dietary changes are maintained long-term. To read the original article click here.

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The Largest Study on Fasting in the World

The AHA! Team — Fri, 22 Nov 2024 06:06:32 +0000

Michael Greger M.D. FACLM via Nutrition Facts – The Buchinger-modified fasting program is put to the test. A century ago, fasting — “starvation, as a therapeutic measure” — was described as “the ideal measure for the human hog…” (Fat shaming is not a new invention in the medical literature.) I’ve covered fasting for weight loss extensively in a nine-video series, but what about all the other purported benefits? I also have a video series on fasting for hypertension, but what about psoriasis, eczema, type 2 diabetes, lupus, metabolic disorder, rheumatoid arthritis, other autoimmune disorders, depression, and anxiety? Why hasn’t it been tested more? One difficulty with fasting research is: What do you mean by fasting? When I think of fasting, I think of water-only fasting, but, in Europe, they tend to practice “modified therapeutic fasting,” also known as Buchinger fasting, which is more like a very low-calorie juice fasting with some vegetable broth. Some forms of fasting may not even cut calories at all. As you can see below and at 1:09 in my video The World’s Largest Fasting Study, Ramadan fasting, for example, is when devout Muslims abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sunset, yet, interestingly, they end up eating the same amount—or even more food—overall. The largest study on fasting to date was published in 2019. More than a thousand individuals were put through a modified fast, cutting daily intake down to about ten cups of water, a cup of fruit juice, and a cup of vegetable soup. They reported very few side effects. In contrast, the latest water-only fasting data from a study that involved half as many people reported nearly 6,000 adverse effects. Now, the modified fasting study did seem to try to undercount adverse effects by only counting reported symptoms if they were repeated three times. However, adverse effects like nausea, feeling faint, upset stomach, vomiting, or palpitations were “observed only in single cases,” whereas the water-only fasting study reported about 100 to 200 of each, as you can see below and at 2:05 in my video. What about the benefits though? In the modified fasting study, participants self-reported improvements in physical and emotional well-being, along with a surprising lack of hunger. Vast majority of those who came in with a pre-existing health complaint reported feeling better What’s more, the vast majority of those who came in with a pre-existing health complaint reported feeling better, with less than 10 percent stating that their condition worsened, as you can see in the graph below and at 2:24 in my video. However, the study participants didn’t just fast; they also engaged in a lifestyle program, which included being on a plant-based diet before and after the modified fast. If only the researchers had had some study participants follow the healthier, plant-based diet without the fast to tease out fasting’s effects. Oh, but they did! About a thousand individuals fasted for a week on the same juice and vegetable soup regimen and others followed a normocaloric (normal calorie) vegetarian diet. As you can see below and at 2:54 in my video, both groups experienced significant increases in both physical and mental quality of life, and, interestingly, there was no significant difference between the groups. In terms of their major health complaints—including rheumatoid arthritis; chronic pain syndromes, like osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, and back pain; inflammatory and irritable bowel disease; chronic pulmonary diseases; and migraine and chronic tension-type headaches—the fasting group appeared to have an edge, but both groups did well, with about 80 percent reporting improvements in their condition and only about 4 percent reporting feeling worse, as you can see below and at 3:25 in my video. Now, this was not a randomized study; people chose which treatment they wanted to follow. So, maybe, for example, those choosing fasting were sicker or something. Also, the improvements in quality of life and disease status were all subjective self-reporting, which is ripe for placebo effects. There was no do-nothing control group, and the response rates to the follow-up quality of life surveys were only about 60 to 70 percent, which also could have biased the results. But extended benefits are certainly possible, given they all tended to improve their diets, as you can see below and at 4:00 in my video. They ate more fruits and vegetables, and less meats and sweets, and therein may lie the secret. “Principally, the experience of fasting may support motivation for lifestyle change. Most fasters experience clarity of mind Most fasters experience clarity of mind and feel a ‘letting go’ of past actions and experiences and thus may develop a more positive attitude toward the future.” As a consensus panel of fasting experts concluded, “Nutritional therapy (theory and practice) is a vital and integral component of fasting. After the fasting therapy and refeeding period, nutrition should follow the recommendations/concepts of a…plant-based whole-food diet…” If you missed the previous video, check out The Benefits of Fasting for Healing. Key Takeaways Fasting as a therapeutic measure has a long history, but its potential benefits beyond weight loss are numerous and underexplored. There are different types of fasting, including water-only fasting and modified therapeutic fasting (such as Buchinger fasting), which involves consuming low-calorie liquids like juice and vegetable broth. Ramadan fasting is also observed, where despite abstaining from food and drink during daylight hours, overall food intake may not decrease. Studies indicate that modified fasting may have fewer adverse effects compared to water-only fasting. Participants in a large modified fasting study reported minimal side effects like nausea or faintness, in contrast to more significant issues reported in water-only fasting studies. Participants in modified fasting studies reported improvements in both physical and emotional well-being, alongside reduced hunger. Those with pre-existing health conditions often experienced improvements, although a controlled comparison with a plant-based diet alone would help delineate fasting-specific effects. Combining fasting with a healthier lifestyle, such as eating a plant-based diet, appears beneficial. Both fasting and non-fasting groups in studies showed significant improvements in quality of life and disease symptoms, suggesting that dietary improvements might be a key factor. To read the original article click here.

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Why Does Fasting Reduce Seizures?

AHA Publisher — Wed, 14 Sep 2022 07:00:03 +0000

Boston Children’s Hospital via Newswise – Calorie restriction has long been associated with reduced seizures in epilepsy. New research from Boston Children’s Hospital helps explain how fasting affects neurons in the brain and could lead the way to new approaches that would avoid the need for fasting or restrictive diets. The findings were published August 30 in the journal Cell Reports. “This study is the first step in understanding how dietary therapies for epilepsy work,” says first author Christopher J. Yuskaitis, MD, PhD, a neurologist with the Epilepsy Center and Epilepsy Genetics Program at Boston Children’s Hospital. “The mechanisms have until now been completely unknown.” DEPDC5, mTOR, and Fasting To connect the dots between diet and seizures, the researchers began with existing knowledge. They knew that the well-known mTOR cellular pathway is involved in many neurological disorders and had shown previously that over-activation of this pathway in neurons increases susceptibility to seizures. Studies by others had shown that mTORC activity is inhibited by acute fasting, though these studies didn’t look at the brain. Finally, Yuskaitis and colleagues knew that signaling by a protein called DEPDC5 acts as a brake on the mTOR pathway. That was intriguing, since mutations in the DEPDC5 gene have recently been found in many people with epilepsy. DEPDC5 mutations have been linked to focal epilepsy, infantile spasms, and sudden death in children. “When we used an animal model that knocks out DEPDC5 specifically in the brain, we found that we could reduce seizures by using an mTOR inhibitor,” says Yuskaitis. “That gave us the idea to explore the connection between DEPDC5, mTOR, and fasting.” Amino Acid Sensing In the new study, they showed in a mouse seizure model that mTOR signaling was reduced in the brain after fasting. Additional studies of cultured rat neurons in a dish suggest that this fasting effect is primarily driven by the lack of three amino acids (leucine, arginine, and glutamine). Going further, the team demonstrated that the presence of these nutrients is sensed by the DEPDC5 protein. When they knocked out DEPDC5 in the brain, mTOR activity was not reduced and fasting no longer protected the mice against seizures. “Amino acid sensing seems to be critical for the beneficial effects of fasting on seizures,” says Yuskaitis. “This suggests that patients with DEPDC5 mutations can’t sense the loss of amino acids and may not benefit from dietary manipulation. But patients who don’t have DEPDC5 mutations may benefit from a targeted dietary strategy.” This could take the form of diets with lower levels of the three amino acids, or medications or supplements that block absorption of those amino acids, he adds. Next Step: Ketogenic Diet This study is only a first step. Yuskaitis and colleagues now want to try diets in animal models that eliminate specific amino acids and observe the effects on seizures. They also want to explore how the ketogenic diet, a popular approach to treating epilepsy, helps curb seizures. No one currently knows why this low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet works. “We’re hoping this will hope us uncover additional dietary-based therapies other than ketogenic diet, which is sometimes difficult to follow long term due to side effects,” says Yuskaitis. Such work may also provide a new lens on neurologic disorders overall. “Using these rare genetic disorders, we are starting to gain fundamental insights into the role of nutrients in brain function,” says senior investigator Mustafa Sahin, MD, PhD, managing director of the Rosamund Stone Zander Translational Neuroscience Center at Boston Children’s. “Findings from these rare disorders may open doors for better treatments of epilepsy in general.” To read the original article click here.

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‘Women are Not Men with Breasts’: Why They Need a Hormone-Balancing Diet

AHA Publisher — Mon, 11 Oct 2021 07:00:36 +0000

Lorie Johnson via CBN News – Statistics show Americans are losing the battle with weight, with obesity becoming the second leading cause of preventable death. For many women, diets don’t seem to work. If you’re a woman who’s had trouble losing weight, you may have been following the wrong plan. Not Your Husband’s Diet Men and women have different hormonal panels. That could be a reason why women might have a harder time shedding extra pounds compared to their male counterparts. Gynecologist and best-selling women’s health author Dr. Sara Gottfried learned this lesson first hand. “I was trying the ketogenic diet with my husband,” she told CBN News, “He lost 20 pounds. I gained weight. And I hear that from so many of my patients and my followers and I think it’s important to realize the missing piece is hormones.” Dr. Gottfried says the root of the problem lies in the fact that most diets are designed by men, for men. In fact, only twenty percent of the studies on metabolism use female participants. “We know that most research is done on men. It’s assumed to apply to women,” she said, “And yet women are not men with breasts. We’ve got very different hormonal exposures, we’ve got very different hormonal balance, and so the way we eat really needs to be different.” Dr. Gottfried’s research on women and weight loss led her to develop a hormone balancing diet that she tried on herself. She finally ended up dropping the stubborn twenty pounds that she had wanted to shed for years. “This was what was missing for me when I was trying to lose that twenty pounds,” she explained, “No amount of exercise or dieting is going to work if your hormones are out of balance.” What Can I Eat? After Dr. Gottfried’s patients began losing weight on the hormone-balancing diet, she decided to share it with a broader audience of women, in her book, Women, Food and Hormones: A Four-Week Plan to Achieve Hormonal Balance, Lose Weight, and Feel Like Yourself Again. The book contains 50 recipes such as Fettuccine Alfredo and taco salad that are slightly modified from the traditional recipes but still qualify as comfort foods. “I’m a big fan of swaps, making sure you get the foods you love the most,” she said. She says her turmeric braised chicken is especially popular with the whole family. “That’s one of my favorites, for the kids and adults, especially husbands,” she said. “That’s almost like fried chicken.” She says the purpose of the diet is to balance a woman’s hormones which makes her feel great and leads to overall good health. She says the goal of any diet should be to feel your best. She says this diet achieves that, but as a wonderful side-effect, leads to weight loss. Phase One: Detox The hormone-balancing diet is called The Gottfried Protocol. It’s broken down into three main parts. The first section is detoxification, which Dr. Gottfried says is missing from most diets, particularly the ketogenic diet. “Detoxification includes eating cruciferous vegetables, the cabbage, the broccoli, the radishes the cauliflower,” she explained. Among other things, the detox phase primes the liver to work efficiently to process fats and other foods and beverages. Keto, with a Female Touch After the detox phase, The Gottfried Protocol involves eating mostly healthy fats. The wide variety of recipes help people who can get stumped trying to figure out what that means. “For breakfast, I’ve got an egg avocado bake,” she said. “So that’s an example of really healthy fat.” While the plan is similar to the keto diet, The Gottfried Protocol includes more carbohydrates because a diet that is too low in carbs can cause hormonal disturbances in women that can make them feel terrible and stay overweight. “It can trigger a stress response which raises cortisol which can block belly fat from being lost,” she said, “Number two, it can cause problems with serotonin, [which] makes it harder to sleep. And number three, it can raise your reverse T3, which can block thyroid function.” The diet calls for a moderate amount of protein, such as poultry and fish. While the diet allows only a small amount of sugar, there are certain recipes on that plan that are similar to our guilty pleasures. “So one of my favorites is this dark chocolate pudding. I absolutely love it,” she said, “I also have a dark chocolate coffee cake that I think is delicious. And there are certain breads as long as they’re baked a certain way that really allow you to get that pleasure without ruining your metabolic health.” Fasting is Key Unfortunately, eating carbohydrates can raise the hormone insulin, which can cause weight retention. So to keep insulin and other weight-related hormones such as leptin and ghrelin balanced, The Gottfried Protocol calls for a 14-hour overnight fast every night. “You’re doing most of it while you’re sleeping,” she explained, “I advise that you don’t eat for three hours before you go to bed. So for instance you might finish eating at 8:00 PM and then eat again the next day at 10:00 AM.” She said among other things, fasting like this re-sets a woman’s insulin levels and guards against insulin resistance, which can lead to diabetes and even some memory and thinking problems. While some women worry that fasting will cause them to feel too hungry, Dr. Gottfried explains that when a woman’s hormones are balanced, she typically loses the desire to eat all the time. To read the original article click here.

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Want to Live Longer? Here Is How Caloric Restriction Can Help You Achieve a Long, Healthy Life

AHA Publisher — Tue, 24 Aug 2021 07:22:42 +0000

Stephanie Woods via NaturalHealth365 – Calorie restriction for weight loss is nothing new. Experts and healthcare professionals have been recommending it for decades to help those who want to drop a few pounds. In fact, several studies have recently found that restricting calories can also improve your health and even prolong your life. What’s So Wrong With the American Diet? The American diet is inundated with processed foods that are barely recognizable as food, loaded with glyphosate, sodium, sugar, and chock full of preservatives. Combine this with the extreme excess that is not just accepted but promoted and encouraged in modern society. It’s easy to see why type 2 diabetes, cancer, obesity, and neurodegenerative disorders are so prevalent and rapidly growing each year. This unhealthy diet is responsible for chronic health conditions and the breakdown of the body. Organs are impacted, so they don’t function as they should, which causes fatty liver, disorders of the gallbladder, and blockages in arteries leading to the heart. The digestive system begins to malfunction with conditions like acid reflux and IBS. Even the chemical makeup is altered, which leads to anxiety and depression. What Is a Healthy Caloric Restriction? Caloric restriction is simply a different way of looking at eating. While most people think it is just limiting the calories they eat each day, it is actually a little more than that. There is a two-prong approach to caloric restriction: Limiting or restricting how many calories you consume each day Get enough nutrients to avoid malnutrition This means making every bite count and taking a good multivitamin every day, as well as staying well-hydrated. So How Does Restricting Calories Extend Life? Certain cellular changes occur within the body when a person follows a caloric restriction diet. Scientists have identified five benefits: Increase sirtuin function – These proteins regulate cellular health. They also help protect cellular components when the body is under stress. Increase AMPK activity – This enzyme helps to regulate metabolism, which helps with weight loss and all over bodily function. Reduce mTOR activity – This protein is linked to chronic disease and aging, so reducing its activity can help stave off many harmful conditions. Block cellular senescence – It helps prevent cells from aging, which prevents older cells from no longer functioning as they should. Encourage autophagy – This means to compel cells to remove damaged, older components inside and replace them with healthy, new ones. Each of these actions helps protect the body against the effects of aging, accelerated aging, and chronic disease. Here Is How to Follow a Caloric Restriction Plan A calorie restriction diet is not easy for most people, and it can be unpleasant. The good news is, as your body adjusts to the new way of eating – and receives more nutrients – your hunger will actually subside and return to normal. In addition, your ghrelin and leptin levels will stabilize, giving you a better handle on your hunger and returning it to a healthier cycle. These tips will help you succeed at following a caloric restriction plan: Talk to your doctor. An integrative physician – with nutrition experience – can help you determine how many calories you should consume and how you should balance carbohydrates, fiber, fat, and protein. Keep a food diary. There are many great apps you can use, such as MyFitnessPal, which calculates your calories, fat, carbs, protein, and other nutrients and helps you with important information about the food you eat. It can also be used on your computer as well as the app. Stay hydrated. Even low-level dehydration can cause you to feel run down and sick. It can also impair how your body functions, particularly when processing the foods you eat. Stick to whole foods. Avoid processed foods and stick to whole, natural foods like organic fruits and vegetables, 100% grass-fed beef and wild-caught fish. And, don’t forget the nutritional value of organic sprouts, nuts, seeds, herbs and spices. Consume only high quality, nutritional supplements. For many people, correcting nutritional deficiencies can make a world of a difference, especially as it relates to vitamins B, C and D. Plus, let’s not forget the importance of getting enough zinc, selenium and magnesium. Eat enough fiber. Fiber is important for keeping your heart and body healthy. It also keeps you from getting constipated. Just remember, you’ll need both soluble and insoluble fiber. Sleep well. Your health is greatly affected by your sleep habits. Most people would feel better by getting 6 – 8 hours of quality sleep – every night – for optimal body and brain performance. Make sure your bedroom is dark; avoid using electronic devices about 1-2 hours before bedtime and, if needed, do some kind of activity to help you to “wind down” like, a warm bath or deep breathing exercises. What’s the bottom line? A caloric restrictive diet can help you prevent or reverse chronic health conditions, help you lose weight, reduce the signs of aging, and help you feel better. It is well worth the effort, and you are going to love the benefits. Sources for this article include: LifeExtension.com NIH.gov NIH.gov MyFitnessPal.com To read the original article click here.

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Keto Smoothie Recipe with Avocado, Chia Seeds & Cacao

AHA Publisher — Tue, 22 Jun 2021 07:00:45 +0000

Dr. Josh Axe, DC, DNM, CN – Have you heard about the keto diet? It’s possibly the best diet for weight loss, and it can even reverse insulin resistance and reduce cardiovascular risk factors, according to recent research. No wonder more and more people are starting to go “keto.” My keto smoothie is an easy way to get started. It includes protein foods and healthy fats, while being very low in carbohydrates. All of the ingredients in this smoothie are nutritious, heart healthy and keto-friendly — plus, they’re delicious! What Does “Going Keto” Mean? “Going keto” means putting your body into a state of ketosis, which is a metabolic state that occurs when most of the body’s energy comes from ketone bodies in the blood, rather than from glucose (or sugar). On the keto diet, you are tricking your body into thinking it’s fasting by eliminating glucose that is found in carbohydrate foods. Your body begins burning fat for energy rather than carbohydrates, so after going keto, most people lose excess body fat rapidly, even when consuming lots of fats and adequate calories through their diet. The ketogenic diet, like any other low-carb diet, works through the elimination of glucose. Our bodies normally run on glucose for energy, but once glucose is no longer available from food sources, we begin to burn stored fat for energy instead. This process will not only help you to shed those extra pounds, but it also helps to control the release of hormones like insulin, which plays a role in the development of diabetes and other health problems. Nutrition Facts One serving of this keto smoothie recipe using cacao powder and without toppings contains the following, including only 6.1 net carbs (total carb grams minus fiber grams): 394.5 calories 40.1 grams fat 11.64 grams carbohydrates 5.5 grams fiber 3.68 grams protein 2.52 grams sugar 22 milligrams sodium 189.5 milligrams magnesium (45.1 percent DV) 6.85 milligrams iron (38.1 percent DV) 328.5 milligrams phosphorus (26.3 percent DV) 2.45 milligrams vitamin E (16.3 percent DV) 2.49 milligrams niacin (15.5 percent DV) 0.17 milligrams thiamin (14.2 percent DV) 0.16 milligrams riboflavin (12.3 percent DV) 36 micrograms folate (9 percent DV) 96 milligrams calcium (7.4 percent DV) 0.73 milligrams zinc (6.6 percent DV) 229 milligrams potassium (4.9 percent DV) 0.073 milligrams vitamin B6 (4.3 percent DV) 2.5 milligrams vitamin C (2.8 percent DV) How to Make A Keto Smoothie A keto smoothie is made up of healthy fats and protein, all foods that are naturally low in carbohydrates. Using a high-powered blender, add in these heart-healthy, keto diet–friendly foods. My keto smoothie recipe starts with 1 to 1¼ cups of full-fat coconut milk as the base. Coconut milk contains a beneficial fat called lauric acid, a medium-chain fatty acid that’s easily absorbed and used by the body for energy. It serves as a great keto diet food. Next add in 1 tablespoon of chia seeds (soaked in 3 tablespoons of water for 10 minutes), which contain essential fatty acids, plus vitamins A, B, E and D and minerals including iron, magnesium, niacin and thiamine. And then add 1 tablespoons of your favorite nut butter to the mix, whether it’s almond butter or even sunflower seed butter. (I recommend that you avoid peanut butter.) For the next ingredient for this keto smoothie, you have a choice of either 2 teaspoons of cacao nibs, cacao powder or cocoa powder, or 1 scoop of chocolate protein powder. Protein powder made from bone broth is packed with protein, low in carbs and low in sugar. You can get the benefits of bone broth easily by adding it to your keto smoothie. Cacao nibs or powder is also healthful and packed with nutrients that fuel the body. The last two ingredients for my keto smoothie are ½ frozen avocado and 1 tablespoon of coconut oil. Adding avocado to this smoothie will give it a delicious creamy texture and its an excellent source of healthy fats, which is especially important when you’re going keto. Now all you have to do is blend the ingredients until they are well-combined, adding water if necessary, and you’re done! If you want to add some bulk to the texture of your keto smoothie, or if you don’t have a frozen avocado on hand, add in some ice, too. Top your keto smoothie with cacao nibs and cinnamon, and enjoy! Keto Smoothie Recipe with Avocado, Chia Seeds & Cacao DESCRIPTION My keto smoothie is an easy way to get started on the keto diet, or just as a great breakfast. It includes protein foods and healthy fats, while being very low in carbohydrates. All of the ingredients in this smoothie are nutritious, heart healthy and keto-friendly — plus, they’re delicious! INGREDIENTS 1–1¼ cups full-fat coconut milk ½ frozen avocado 1 tablespoon nut butter of choice 1 tablespoon chia seeds, soaked in 3 tablespoons of water for 10minutes 2 teaspoons cacao nibs, cacao powder or cocoa powder OR 1 scoop of chocolate protein powder made from bone broth 1 tablespoon coconut oil ice (optional*) for topping: cacao nibs and cinnamon ¼ cup water, if needed INSTRUCTIONS Add contents into a high-powered blender, blending until well-combined. Top with cacao nibs and cinnamon. To read the original article click here. For more articles from Dr. Axe click here.

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7 Benefits of a Bone Broth Fast: Stronger Gut, Skin + More

AHA Publisher — Thu, 29 Apr 2021 07:00:44 +0000

Jillian Levy, CHHC via Dr. Axe – By now you might be familiar with bone broth and all this time-honored, traditional food has to offer — collagen, amino acids and numerous trace minerals, just for starters. Maybe you’re now looking to take things to the next level and try a bone broth fast, but you aren’t quite sure how to safely go about this. As you’ll learn, bone broth is one of the most nutrient-dense, healing foods for the digestive system and therefore a great way to kick off a healthier way of eating and to help resolve symptoms related to poor digestion and other concerns. What Is a Bone Broth Fast? A bone broth fast involves drinking bone broth several times per day but not eating much other solid food. Although it’s been consumed around the world in one form or another for thousands of years, bone broth is made from animal parts that in modern times are normally discarded. These include bones and marrow, skin and feet, tendons and ligaments — all of which aren’t edible on their own but make nutrient-packed additions to slow-simmering stock. Bone broth is boiled slowly over several days — normally with veggies, an acid and fresh herbs in addition to animal parts — allowing all of the ingredients to release their stored nutrients. There are several kinds that are most popular, including chicken bone broth and beef bone broth. Fasts are not for everyone, and sometimes certain kinds can pose risks since they involve consuming little nutrients due to greatly reducing calorie intake. However, if you make a good candidate, consuming bone broth is ideal for a fast because it’s chock-full of both macronutrients and micronutrients. Within fish, chicken and beef bone broth, you’ll find amino acids (which form proteins) like glycine, arginine and proline; vitamins and minerals; collagen; electrolytes; and even antioxidants like glucosamine. One of the things that makes a bone broth fast stand apart from other types of fasts is that it’s an ideal way to obtain more collagen, a type of protein needed to create healthy tissue found throughout the body. Collagen is found inside the lining of the digestive tract, within bones in bone marrow, in skin, and in the tissues that form joints, tendons, ligaments and cartilage. Within collagen are other special nutrients, including amino acids like proline and glycine, plus gelatin — each of which has its own unique functions. Benefits Why is bone broth good for fasting? The benefits of consuming bone broth while fasting include: stronger immunity against common illnesses or allergies reduced symptoms related to digestive disorders like leaky gut syndrome, IBS or IBD generally enhanced digestion with fewer cases of bloating, diarrhea, gas, acid reflux and constipation healthier joints, ligaments and tendons more youthful-looking skin thanks to collagen stronger bones higher intake of importance minerals like calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, potassium and more Before we dive in to the advantages of consuming bone broth, let’s first talk about the many benefits of fasting. Fasting, when done right and by the right people, has been shown to promote better health by: improving weight loss and helping with weight maintenance reducing fasting insulin levels and normalizing blood sugar activity lowering cholesterol promoting the secretion of human growth hormone, which is important for burning fat having positive effects on body mass and health markers in professional athletes reducing risk for diseases like diabetes, cancer and heart complications normalizing appetite by controlling hunger hormones like ghrelin lowering triglyceride levels even slowing down the aging process and increasing someone’s life span Here’s more about how a bone broth fast can benefit you: 1. Improves Digestive Functions Bone broth is a natural source of collagen, a type of protein that’s needed to form tissue that makes up the lining of the GI tract. Collagen protects and soothes the lining of the digestive tract and can aid in healing leaky gut syndrome, IBS symptoms and acid reflux. It’s been shown that patients with IBD produce less collagen in their digestive systems. Increased intakes are capable of helping strengthen and normalize mucus membranes in the GI lining, closing tiny junctures and stopping indigested food particles and chemicals from leaking out of the gut into the bloodstream. When collagen breaks down, gelatin is formed, which is known to help people dealing with food allergies and sensitivities to foods, such as cows’ milk and gluten. Gelatin in bone broths contains “conditional” amino acids called arginine, glycine, glutamine and proline, which have certain anti-aging effects and promote probiotic balance and growth. 2. Makes Your Skin Glow Collagen helps form tissues found in skin that give it strength, smoothness, elasticity and youthful appearance. In fact, studies have found that higher intakes of collagen are associated with improvements in skin barrier functions, increased hydration and reductions in signs of aging, including wrinkles, fine lines and sagging. Although you likely won’t notice any improvements within just a few short days, higher collagen intake is also known to decrease the appearance of cellulite. Cellulite develops due to lack of connective tissue, which is made from collagen. 3. Supplies Important Minerals Some fasts fail to provide important trace minerals that we need for ongoing energy, immunity, digestion and more. Because bone broth is made from animal bones and parts that are concentrated sources of numerous minerals, it provides minerals and electrolytes, including calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, sodium, potassium, sulfate and fluoride. This can help prevent an electrolyte imbalance, dehydration that can occur during a fast, fatigue, brain fog, moodiness, and muscle spasms or weakness. 4. Helps Prevent Muscle Wasting It’s possible during a fast to wind up losing some weight, which can really be due to muscle (and therefore strength) loss. Luckily during a bone broth fast, you still obtain amino acids, such as glycine and proline, that help prevent the breakdown of valuable protein tissue found in muscles. In fact, a bone broth fast might even help you with muscle recovery, reduce joint pain (since collagen is known to fight symptoms of arthritis) and even relax tense muscles naturally. Glycine is an important amino acid for actually building muscle strength, ushering nutrients into cells to be used for energy, controlling blood sugar levels and even synthesizing human growth hormone. Because glycine plays a role in the process of gluconeogenesis, which takes place in the liver, it can provide cells with an energy source even when little calories or carbohydrates are consumed. This, in turn, can help prevent sarcopenia, muscle wasting as we age. 5. Helps Detoxify the Liver and Digestive System Consuming bone broth is an effective way to boost your supply of the antioxidant glutathione, one of the body’s most powerful detoxifying agents. Glycine is a precursor needed for the production of glutathione, which helps the liver flush out excess chemicals, stored hormones and other waste. Other minerals, acids and electrolytes can also boost detoxification processes, including acetic acid (found in apple cider vinegar, which is often added to bone broth recipes), magnesium and sulfate. 6. Boosts Immunity Bone broth fasts can increase beneficial bacteria living in the gut, and gut health is highly correlated with stronger immunity (not to mention many other aspects of health, like hormonal balance and weight regulation). Good bacteria in the gut (often called probiotics) can actually turn on certain genes that help regulate inflammation and turn down numerous types of unwanted symptoms. 7. Can Improve Sleep, Memory and Cognition The amino acids found in bone broth act like inhibitory neurotransmitters for the production of chemicals and hormones that help us sleep, think clearly, stay motivated, remember information and make decisions. Higher intake of glycine, for example, has been found to help people who can’t sleep get better rest, lower symptoms of anxiety, improve mental performance and even enhance memory. Bone broth is also a great way to obtain electrolytes, including potassium, magnesium and sodium, that sustain energy and assist in muscle, nerve, digestive and cognitive functions. Magnesium, for example, is known to help decrease headaches, restlessness, muscle spasms during sleep, muscle pains and digestive discomfort. How to Do It New to drinking bone broth and/or fasting? Here are answers to some frequently asked questions about the process: How long should you do a bone broth fast? Most people do this type of fasting for a period of three to four days, while consuming several quarts of bone broth daily and eliminating many problematic foods. Plan to fast for a period of three to four days. This amount of time is best for helping kill off harmful bacteria in the gut, repair the GI tract and repopulate the gut with probiotics. Longer than this might be tolerable for some, but it also raises the risk for more problems, fatigue and deficiencies in certain groups of people. If you plan on doing intermittent fasting, a longer duration up to 90 days might be beneficial. How much bone broth should you drink during a fast? Each day you ideally should consume between three to four quarts of bone broth. Making the broth yourself is the best way to ensure it’s high-quality and doesn’t cost you too much. About 12 ounces is the proper amount for one serving. You should consume this 12-ounce serving about five times a day — 7 a.m., 10 a.m., 1 p.m., 4 p.m. and 7 p.m., for example. What foods should you definitely avoid while fasting? While fasting, you’ll ideally not eat anything at all, unless you’re doing intermittent fasting and it’s within your “eating window.” It’s ideal to eliminate all problematic and inflammatory foods during a bone broth fast, including grains, packaged/processed snacks, added sugar, FODMAP foods/complex carbohydrates, sweetened drinks, dairy and refined vegetable oils. Within your eating window, you can include as many healthy fats, clean proteins, fruits and veggies as you choose. Can you drink water on a bone broth fast? Drinking water is definitely encouraged. This helps keep you hydrated and can make fasting easier in general. How should you make and store bone broth? Plan to make your broth one to two times in a large batch and refrigerate/freeze small portions to keep them fresh throughout the fast. Drink broth throughout the day as you’d like, adding ingredients like salt, pepper, vinegar and seasoning for extra taste. You can reheat cooled or frozen stock on the stovetop, whisking it and skimming off the fatty/oily surface if you’d like to (although this is nutrient-dense and should be kept for cooking later on). Are there different methods of doing bone broth fasting? Bone broth fasts can be customizable to fit your needs and goals. They don’t require buying lots of expensive supplements, going for very long periods without eating “normally,” or much risk and investment. Here are several ways you can try a bone broth fast safely: You may want to practice intermittent fasting by going without any food for 12–15 hours of the day (usually through the night and morning), although this isn’t necessary for everyone. You might choose to utilize a combination of different stocks (chicken bone broth, beef bone broth and fish stock, for example) or stick with exclusively beef stock if you have a very sensitive system since this seems to be most well-tolerated. Try a bone broth fast as part of the GAPS diet protocol, eliminating problematic foods to test your response, or include bone broth in a FODMAP diet or specific carbohydrate diet (SCD) if you know certain carbohydrates cause your symptoms to worsen. It’s also a good idea to consume probiotics/fermented foods during the fast and afterward to boost intake of healthy bacteria. Even if you aren’t looking to do a formal fast but still want to take advantage of bone broth’s benefits, you can start by consuming eight ounces of broth once or twice daily as a soup, a plain beverage or within other recipes. Who Should Do It? How do you know if a bone broth fast is right for you? The people who can benefit most from fasting with bone broth include: those with digestive disorders (like leaky gut syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease or IBS) anyone struggling...

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How Fasting Improves Mental & Brain Health

AHA Publisher — Wed, 20 Jan 2021 08:00:38 +0000

Dr. Will Cole via Dr. Caroline Leaf – The brain is no doubt one of our most important organs. Not only does it control our basic movements and bodily functions, it allows us to think, feel, and recall information. All of these things are vital to the human experience and when one of these functions goes awry, it can make life a lot more difficult and a lot less enjoyable. And sadly, brain problems are on the rise at a rapid pace. In fact, The National Institute of Mental Health estimates that close to 20% of American adults currently suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder. That doesn’t take into account the many people struggling through brain fog on a daily basis or those with autoimmune brain problems like dementia, autism, or multiple sclerosis. Something has to be done. As a functional medicine practitioner and the author of the new book Intuitive Fasting, I am always on the search for the most effective, natural way to optimize your health – including your brain. Intermittent fasting has some serious next-level health benefits that are backed up both scientifically and anecdotally. Here’s exactly what fasting can do for your brain health. Lowered Brain Inflammation Chronic inflammation plays such a role in brain health that an entire area of research known as “the cytokine model of cognitive function” is dedicated to studying how inflammation, specifically inflammation of the brain, is correlated with brain problems. Elevated inflammation levels increase the microRNA-155 molecule that ends up creating gaps in the blood brain barrier that let bacteria and other toxins slip through causing your brain’s immune system to work in overdrive to fight off these invaders. This ends up creating a cascade of inflammation to your brain in order to try to protect it. This inflammatory oxidative stress in the hypothalamus of the brain is the underlying cause of brain fog. Fasting has been shown to reduce the release of pro-inflammatory cells called monocytes, which when circulating at high levels – as a result of the eating habits humans have acquired over the last few centuries – can cause series tissue damage. Studies have shown that in periods of fasting, these cells go into a type of “sleep mode” and turn off. This means that fasting works essentially as an antidote to the high-sugar, processed food-filled standard American diet. Which brings me to my next point. Clean Brain Energy Intermittent fasting helps push your metabolism into a state of ketosis where your body utilizes fat, in the form of ketones for energy instead of sugar in the form of glucose. As fasting continues, deeper ketosis develops, you mobilize more stored fat to use as fuel, and ketones including beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB), acetoacetate (AcAc), and acetone (BrAce) end up replacing glucose as the primary energy source for the central nervous system. BHB is particularly important to brain health because when BHB is produced, it activates the AMPK pathway, which is involved in regulating energy balance and inflammation, and inhibits the NLRP3 inflammasome an inflammatory protein that activates the inflammatory response and has been connected to various inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. This ketone acts as a more effective fuel source for your brain considering it gets transported straight to the brain and enters the mitochondria of brain cells where it is used to make energy. It’s suspected that the production of BHB is responsible for the increased focus and concentration – and the lack of brain fog – many ketogenic dieters report. BHB also acts as a signaling molecule in brain cells and can induce the expression of proteins. One such protein, brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), is known for promoting cellular resilience and synaptic plasticity. More specifically, BDNF works to support the survival of existing brain cells and encourages the growth of new, healthy ones. Lowered synaptic plasticity has been shown to contribute to a range of brain health, psychiatric, and neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease, autism, schizophrenia. De-Stress Your Brain If there’s one thing we can all probably agree upon, it’s that we’re all chronically stressed. And, unfortunately, chronic stress does a number on our mind and body. In fact, studies have found that chronic stress can actually cause long-term changes in the structure and function of the brain that can contribute to mental health issues. Another study even found an association between chronic stress and an increased risk of insomnia and dementia. You see, chronic stress triggers a chain reaction in your brain’s hypothalamus, which then sends a message to your adrenal glands to release cortisol and adrenaline, which are two of your stress hormones. Unfortunately for us, cortisol release also causes our blood sugar to rise, which means it can contribute to chronic inflammation in a feedback loop: The more stressed you are, the worse your inflammation; and the worse your inflammation the more stressed you get. As you begin to quell inflammation, support autophagy (cellular renewal), stabilize blood sugar, balance the gut microbiome as well as increase BDNF and stem cells through flexible intermittent fasting, you’ll be able to see and feel the results of being less stressed and way more zen. But this is just the tip of the iceberg of what fasting can do for your health. If you want to take your brain health to the next-level and experience the overreaching benefits of fasting, pre-order my book Intuitive Fasting to receive access to my private online fasting group, shopping guide for the meal plan in the book and a sneak peek of the book right now. To read the original article click here. For more articles from Dr. Leaf click here.

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