Intermittent fasting has been a popular diet trend for the last several years. Many celebrities like Jennifer Aniston, Mark Wahlberg, Kim Kardashian, Elon Musk, and more claim to practice some form of intermittent fasting. Intermittent fasting is an eating plan that involves only eating during a set number of hours and fasting the rest of the time on a regular schedule. Intermittent fasting can also include plans to eat normally during certain days and fast or significantly restrict calories on other days.
An example of a popular intermittent fasting plan is the 16/8 method, where you fast for 16 hours and eat during an 8-hour window, where you fit in two or more meals during that window. Another example of a popular intermittent fasting plan is the 5:2 diet, where you eat as you usually do for five days. Then you restrict your caloric intake to 500-600 calories the other two days a week. Of course, the most popular reason for following an intermittent fasting diet plan is for weight loss. Still, pursuing an intermittent diet plan also has other purported benefits, such as improving chronic conditions like irritable bowel syndrome, high cholesterol, and arthritis.
A Harvard research review of 40 studies about intermittent fasting found that intermittent fasting was effective for weight loss overall. However, these studies found that a typical calorie-restricted diet was just as effective at helping study participants lose weight as the intermittent fasting diet. If you have been searching for a diet for high cholesterol, studies also found that a regular calorie-restricted diet may be more beneficial than an intermittent fasting diet to decreasing cholesterol, particularly LDL (bad) cholesterol and blood glucose levels. In addition, some research has found that intermittent fasting can benefit heart disease, inflammatory bowel disease, brain health, physical performance, and type 2 diabetes. However, it is essential to note that other diets, including eating healthier overall, may also have similar benefits.
You should avoid intermittent fasting diets if you have medical conditions like diabetes, eating disorders that involve unhealthy caloric restriction, are pregnant or breastfeeding, are still in the growth stage of life (children, adolescents), or use medications that require taking the medication with food. In addition, it would be best to avoid intermittent fasting diet plans that need you to fast for long periods, such as 24 hours or more, because fasting this long can cause your body to store fat because your body will think you are starving. Also, it would help if you focused on eating healthy meals during non-fasting times instead of eating anything you want and potentially overeating.
If you are used to eating small meals throughout the day, suddenly changing to an intermittent fasting diet would likely be challenging. However, since the research has found a calorie-restricted diet to be as effective as intermittent fasting, you should focus on reducing calories when eating your small meals throughout the day instead of shocking your system by going on an intermittent fasting diet. You may also find that you are overeating during non-fasting times to make up for feeling starved during fasting, which will counteract any benefits you may realize from intermittent fasting. However, if your day-to-day diet routine already involves eating about two or three larger meals, you may give intermittent fasting a try if you are trying to lose weight.
Diet review: Intermittent fasting for weight loss. The Nutrition Source. (2022, May 17). Retrieved May 3, 2023, from https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/healthy-weight/diet-reviews/intermittent-fasting
Intermittent fasting: What is it, and how does it work? Intermittent Fasting: What is it, and how does it work? | Johns Hopkins Medicine. (2023, March 1). Retrieved May 3, 2023, from https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/intermittent-fasting-what-is-it-and-how-does-it-work
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