The increasingly popular term “intermittent fasting” isn’t fading away, nor is it a new trend. But it corresponds to the most ancient model that establishes a pattern that alternates between moments of ingestion and fasting necessary to regulate the proper functioning of our body, especially for the balance of the liver and other key organs in digestive functions.
In a dialogue with Florentina Dafne Reale, a doctor especially in functional medicine and the author of “Holistic Medicine”, “Patriotic Medicine and Epigenetics” and “Preventive Medicine in your kitchen”, he explained the main verifiable benefits of continuous fasting and in which cases he warned. it is not recommended.
First of all, Dafne Raele claimed this ancient therapy that goes back to our ancestors, mentioned and illustrated by ancient debaters, doctors and philosophers of antiquity, among them Hippocrates, Plato, Aristotle, Socrates and Galen, for its great benefits and the renewing powers that fasting brings. to our body
Likewise, the expert affirms that for fasting to be effective, it is necessary to eat healthy food: “A poor diet does not stabilize hormones to regain sensitivity in insulin, leptin and metabolic flexibility.”
An expert in functional medicine has explained that to be effective in intermittent fasting, it is necessary to learn to eat before fasting, that is, to determine what has been ingested during the periods in which food intake occurs.
“Failure to fast, if at the time of eating the food we opted for beyond the process or putting aside the importance of good hydration,” he argued.
Dafne Raele affirmed that “everyone fasts” and explained: “Fasting happens naturally from the last hour of the night we ate something until the first hour. Over time, if we compare the patterns of eating with our ancestors, especially with the Paleolithic period, which lies with most of our evolution, the longest periods of eating and we will spend periods of fasting until we can get food.
“It was changing industrially, then man began to eat more and more often and reduce the window of fasting. Faced with this change in dynamics, with more and more in the window, the concept of continuous fasting has been reintroduced,” he concluded.
He also explained that there are many types of fasting, and in both cases, it is appropriate to consult health professionals who can ensure that a person is prepared to do it effectively.
The minimum fast is 12 hours, since it is the minimum period of time that our digestive system must have complete rest.
“A complete 12-hour fast must coincide with the circadian rhythms, that is, it must be aligned with the natural cycles of the day: so that we eat until sunset and during the day it accumulates ideal anaphoras and that our physiology works. it is better,’ he said.
And before giving details of the most common types of fasting, the expert warned: “Now that we have stopped talking a lot about fasting, special care must be taken. One thing that the majority of people should focus on is a 12-hour fast, since it is a physiological digestive rest and it would be good for all of us to do so. Otherwise, the liver does not have enough hours to repair itself and fulfill all its detoxification functions.
According to Dafne Raele, the type of fasting recommended for each patient is “very personalized”, because “the characteristics of the patient must be considered and what regimen is most suitable for the lifestyle”.
12/12: this is the best time to restore circadian rhythms and start feeling real hunger. It’s even better before.
16/8: recommended for people who try to reduce insulin levels in the blood, the production of ketogenic bodies or caloric restriction.
24 hours: those carried out for anti-aging purposes when there is a significant increase in growth hormone levels. At the same time, they are used for autoimmune diseases and chemotherapy therapies.
12 hours of intermittent fasting
Fasting is very tolerable, because it is not very long. Indeed, it can be perfectly adapted to the life of anyone who does not care for prolonged fasts. It is the one that most closely matches the natural circadian rhythms and, as we have already said, it is recommended that everyone (with a few exceptions) be able to restore themselves properly.
The time we eat is when, it only matters what and how much.
In this way, you only need to have dinner in the morning (7-8 am), ideally when the sun is going down and have breakfast together in the morning (7-8 am). What we eat is as important as when we decide to stop eating.
16 hours of intermittent fasting
This method consists of performing a daily fast of 16 hours and a food consumption window of 8 hours. It is also known as “time restricted eating”. The purpose of the fast is for those who want to start reaching for longer fasts or are looking for a practical way to be used every day, since in many cases it only involves dinner or breakfast. The number of attractions in this window varies by patient.
24 hour fast
They are called deep fasts because they are 24 hours or more. They are now used for autoimmune diseases and in chemotherapy therapies. There are more and more doctors who use intermittent fasting for specific diets. In this case it is recommended that you always consult a professional
The most common method of fasting
The expert said that in his office he perceives the greater part of the patients, that the more they fast, the less hungry they are, I take care that they increase in fruits, retentions, refluxes, and all digestive diseases by means of digestive rest; suffering system reset
According to Dafne, great improvements are observed in metabolic diseases – those who have diabetes, insulin resistance or hypercholesterolemia- since lowering insulin with intermittent fasting also improves these levels, while accompanying the diet. low glycemic load
“From working medicine, all doctors work with fasting continuously, because it has many benefits, especially in heart disease, obesity, and in all diseases that have increased insulin or dysfunction”, we observe.
When is the fast broken?
It is not recommended that people with low weight, no food, cachexia, or eating disorders exercise fasting. Neither are minors, pregnant or lactating women, nor men with high stress/cortisol levels or irregular menstrual cycles, since long fasting can be perceived in the body as additional stress, aggravating the basic picture.
It is also recommended for those who suffer from frequent hypotension or hypoglycemia, or those who suffer from gout, since fasting can increase uric acid.
